Crown Melbourne to welcome more visitors as Covid-19 restrictions eased

From 26 March, Crown Melbourne will be able to operate at 75% of its maximum capacity, with one customer permitted every two square metres.

The facility will also no longer be required to deactivate every second electronic gaming machine and electronic table game, meaning more gaming amenities will be available to customers.

However, other physical distancing and hygiene protocols will remain in place for the foreseeable future.

Victoria has been by far the most-affected state by Covid-19 in Australia, with a total of 20,483 cases and 820 deaths.

However, the state has not recorded a new case of Covid-19 since 8 March, while there are currently no known active cases of the virus in the state.

New of the relaxation of measures comes after it was confirmed yesterday (22 March) that private equity group Blackstone Group had put forward an offer of AUS$8.02bn (£4.47bn/€5.18bn/US$6.17bn) to acquire the remaining shares in Crown.

Blackstone offered Aus$11.85 for each share in Crown, for the 90.1% of shares it does not currently own. It already holds a 9.99% stake.

Crown said it is yet to fully review the proposal and has launched an assessment of the offer, during which it will engage with relevant stakeholders, including regulatory authorities.