Wagering on games of chance - Lower Saxony casinos can carry on operating temporarily.
In Lower Saxony, casinos' operations can carry on despite the ongoing dispute around the recent tender. The Financial Ministry granted a temporary license to the current operator, SNG, allowing it to run for now, as announced on Wednesday. The license would have expired in late August.
SNG, which manages all ten casinos in the state, did not win the tender in November and filed a legal challenge against losing its license, according to the ministry. There's no word yet on when the Administrative Court of Hanover will decide on this case. This temporary license, effective for a maximum of one year, aims to prevent closures.
The casinos should have been taken over by MSBN GmbH & Co KG (Merkur Spielbanken) from September, the winner of the tender in November. The new operator planned to run the locations under the Merkur Spielbanken brand, with existing employees staying on. SNG's parent company is Casinos Austria International from Austria.
Around 400 employees are impacted.
"It's good and in the interest of more than 400 female and male employees at the casinos that we now have clarity about the continuation of the casino operation beyond August 31st," commented Finance Minister Gerald Heere. "The goal of the interim license is to ensure a smooth casino operation from September 1st." According to the Green politician, "It's essential for the affected employees that the casinos can remain open."
Gerald Heere added, "Old and new license holders should continue to negotiate a smooth takeover, not only for a short-term but also for a long-term, legally secure solution". The temporary license will no longer be valid once the tender decision is made.
Affected are the classic casinos in Hanover, Braunschweig, Bad Zwischenahn, and Osnabrück as well as the automatic casinos in Bad Bentheim, Bad Pyrmont, Göttingen, Seevetal, Wolfsburg, and Norderney.
Read also:
- Despite the ongoing dispute over the 'Invitation to tender' in Lower Saxony, the Administrative Court of Hanover has yet to make a decision on SNG's legal challenge against losing its casino license.
- The temporary license granted to SNG by the Finances Ministry of Lower Saxony, following their loss in the 'Games of chance' tender in November, enables them to operate the state's ten casinos, including those in Hanover, Braunschweig, Bad Zwischenahn, and Osnbürg, until the administrative court's decision.
- After being ousted as the casino operator in Lower Saxony to Merkur Spielbanken, Gerald Heere, the Finance Minister, commended the decision to grant a temporary license to SNG, ensuring job security for the BMF's 400 employees.
- In response to the temporary license granted to SNG, BMF's parent company, Casinos Austria International, and Merkur Spielbanken should continue negotiations to ensure a smooth and legally secure takeover of Lower Saxony's casinos in both the short and long term.
