SYDNEY, July 21 (Reuters) - Australian casino firm Echo Entertainment Group Ltd EGP.AX will pay a Hong Kong partner to fly in rich Chinese gamblers to a lavish new complex in Brisbane, upping the rivalry with Crown Resorts Ltd CWN.AX for tourism's most coveted demographic.
After pipping Crown for a licence to build a new casino in Australia's third-largest city, Echo on Tuesday said it would team up with Hong Kong conglomerate Chow Tai Fook 1929.HK to bring Chinese high-rollers to Brisbane as an alternative to the Asian gaming hubs of Macau and Singapore.
The involvement of Chow Tai Fook, a quarter stakeholder in the project, gives Brisbane-based Echo a chance to close on Melbourne-based Crown in the battle for Chinese visitors, the world's biggest and biggest-spending outbound tourism market.
"It will allow Echo to take a greater share of the VIP dollars that come into Australia once it opens up," said an analyst who asked not to be named because he had not yet published research on Echo's Brisbane licence.
"It is going to be a pretty impressive property."
While Echo and Crown are booking record turnover from Chinese high-rollers, Crown gets the larger share at its main casino in Melbourne. Spending by Chinese visitors to Australia leapt 19 per cent to A$5.7 billion ($4.19 billion) last year, according to government figures.
Crown is building a towering casino targeting Chinese gamblers near Echo's flagship complex on Sydney's waterfront. Had Crown won the Brisbane licence, it would have allowed the firm controlled by billionaire James Packer to dominate Echo in Australia's three most popular cities for foreign tourists.
Echo Chief Executive Officer Matt Bekier said his firm got about 30 percent of its Sydney revenue from Chinese high-rollers, and he anticipated Brisbane would receive about the same with the help of real estate, entertainment and jewellery conglomerate Chow Tai Fook.
"Chow Tai Fook has very deep relationships with Macau-based junkets and they have a special incentive for bringing additional volume of VIP business to Australia that we don't currently see," Bekier told reporters.
The Brisbane riverfront complex, scheduled to open in 2022, would make that city an essential side-trip for Chinese gamblers arriving in Sydney and Melbourne, not an outright destination, he said.
Echo shares were up nearly 1 percent and Crown's were up 0.4 percent, while the broader market rose 0.5 percent.
($1 = 1.3611 Australian dollars)