Packer linked to Ameristar takeover

2008-07-10 15:48:17

Australian billionaire and Crown Casinos owner James Packer is lining up a bid for the Ameristar Casino company, it has been reported.

According to newspaper the Age, Packer and his associates apparently see Ameristar's eight resorts as a great addition to the Crown gambling empire and are prepared to pay $2.4 billion to acquire them.

Crown has been making moves inside the US gambling sector in recent months and recently purchased properties in Pittsburgh and Las Vegas.

The Ameristar casinos would further increase its presence in Nevada, as well as giving Packer a foothold in the Mississippi, Iowa, Missouri, Illinois and Colorado markets.

It was rumoured earlier this year that Packer was in New Jersey to inspect Donald Trump's Atlantic City gaming resorts, although there have been no reports saying he is interested in buying them.

Last month it was announced that the Crown Las Vegas project, which would have seen the company build one of the tallest gaming resorts in the US, has been put on hold indefinitely.