Imperial Pacific to request deadline extension

Imperial Pacific International has confirmed that it will not finish construction of its Saipan integrated resort by the firm’s previous completion date of 31 August 2018, and has requested a deadline extension until December.

IPI’s VP of Construction, Eric Poon, confirmed that the Imperial Pacific Resort had progressed from 45 percent to 68 percent complete in recent months.

“The development of the resort hotel experienced a big jump and we are trying to [do] everything and get ready for the inspection by the end of the year,” Poon stated, speaking to the Commonwealth Casino Commission.

“Overall, our focus is on three areas – the resort hotel, hotel tower that includes the building facade and roof and the external works which in front of the hotel lobby.”

Earlier in the month, Edward Deleon Guerrero, executive director of the Commonwealth Casino Commission, urged IPI to “identify how much more time they need because August is right around the corner”.

“CCC regulations adopted the casino licence agreement so any changes into the agreement requires us to go back and change our own regulation to be compatible with the agreement as we absorb the agreement as part of the regulatory functions,” he explained.

Poon told the Commission that IPI’s senior management is currently preparing its official request for a deadline extension.

“We are still finalising a lot of documentation and it’s not a 10 to 20-page extension package,” he added. “We still have a lot of information that we have to prepare and consult with our general contractor to once again get the construction and manpower schedule. It’s been taking a very long time but we are almost there.”