Aichi Advances Airport Island IR Plan Ahead of 2027 Bid Round
NAGOYA, Japan – Aichi prefecture has opened a request for proposal process for a possible integrated resort on the island that hosts Chubu Centrair International Airport.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:The move gives private operators a formal route into one of Japan’s more closely watched potential casino bids ahead of the next national licensing round.
The prefecture’s timetable requires interested private-sector groups to submit participation statements by July 31. A dialogue phase will then run through September, with final proposal submissions expected in the autumn before authorities select a preferred candidate and runner-up.
That marks a step up from the earlier opinion-gathering phase. In February, Aichi published a draft implementation policy for the airport-island site and sought market feedback on whether the project was viable. The proposed location covers about 50 hectares on reclaimed land in Tokoname City and sits beside both the airport and the Aichi Sky Expo complex, a combination the prefecture says could support an international tourism and MICE-led development model.
Aichi’s renewed push has been taking shape for several months. Local authorities said in February they would resume efforts to join Japan’s next IR application round after previously stepping back in 2022, when Governor Hideaki Omura said the Covid-19 disruption made it difficult to proceed. Since then, the prefecture has also launched a separate fiscal 2026 research tender and set aside JPY276.6 million in its budget for further study work around an international tourism hub with IR facilities.
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Aichi Is Positioning for Japan’s Second IR Window
The bigger commercial question is whether Aichi can turn early interest into a bankable bid. According to the prefecture’s feasibility outreach, four unnamed entities indicated a willingness to act as principal developers or operators, while another 11 organizations submitted views based on relevant expertise or technical know-how. That suggests there is interest, but not yet certainty, around who would actually anchor the project.
The timing matters because Japan has now fixed its second national IR application period for May 6 to November 5, 2027. Under the country’s IR framework, up to three licenses can be issued nationwide, but only Osaka secured approval in the first round, leaving room for two more projects if the government is satisfied with the next batch of bids.
That leaves Aichi in a more competitive but still open field. Hokkaido and Nagasaki have both been discussed as likely contenders, while Osaka is already moving ahead with the MGM Osaka development, currently estimated at about JPY1.51 trillion and targeted for a late-2030 opening.
What Operators Will Watch Next
For investors and operators, the attraction is obvious enough: Aichi sits in central Japan, includes Nagoya in its wider catchment, and can pitch an airport-adjacent site with existing convention infrastructure. The risk is also clear. Japan remains an expensive market to build in, and recent industry analysis has questioned whether enough strong bidders will emerge in the second round to make every candidate location viable.
What happens next will depend on the quality of the groups that step forward by July and whether the dialogue process produces a realistic operating plan. For now, Aichi has moved from broad interest to formal market testing, and that alone makes it one of the prefectures to watch most closely in Japan’s next casino race.
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