Deloitte gets go-ahead for Cyprus casino consulting

The Cyprus government has signed a contract with the advisory firm Deloitte Ltd, which was selected on January 29 following an international public tender, to provide consulting services for the licensing of an integrated casino resort.
According to an official announcement, the contract was signed on behalf of the government by the Permanent Secretary of the Energy and Tourism Ministry Stelios Himonas.
The consultants already held a first meeting on February 20 with the members of the competent Ministerial and Steering Committees, set up to proceed with the project’s implementation.
The plan, which will determine how many casino-resort licences will be awarded and in which districts, is already two months behind schedule as the government had initially declared that it would adopt a fast-track process by December last year in an effort to speed up development, employment and investment.
The consultant will now advise the government whether to start with an outright project or in stages, and whether this could begin by the end of 2014.