Down 143 percent on the previous corresponding profit of $77.9m, pandemic-hit SkyCity Entertainment Group has reported a loss for its latest half-year of $33.7m.
Revenue fell 35 percent from $449.9m to $289.8m, the business citing Covid disruptions and the material impact that has had on how it performed.
Construction of its $700m-plus NZ International Convention Centre and new Horizon Hotel in Auckland's centre "remains complex but is progressing well" and the company is working closely with Fletcher Construction, it said.
The business which employs 4000 people has just released the result for the six months to December 31, 2021 declaring no interim dividend for shareholders.
"Covid has continued to extensively impact the business and operations at each of SkyCity's properties in the first half of the financial year. Government-mandated lockdowns resulted in the closure of SkyCity Auckland for 107 days, SkyCity Hamilton for 65 days, SkyCity Queenstown for 22 days and SkyCity Adelaide for eight days,” commented Michael Ahearne, SkyCity chief executive.
“When permitted to reopen, the properties have operated under significant constraints due to restrictions on mass gatherings and physical distancing requirements. What we have observed is that our New Zealand domestic gaming business demonstrates resilience and is quick to rebound when operating without restrictions”
The company is looking towards the end of this month, citing the Government announcing a staged re-opening of our borders from the end of February. People from Australia, Britain, the United States, Singapore, Japan and Korea might be able to travel here again from July if they are vaccinated, the business noted.
