A total of nine sites have been chosen to continue to the next level of the bidding process for the two remaining licenses which would allow them to develop and run a casino and resort in South Korea.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has announced this Wednesday that they will be accepting requests for proposal for a total of nine sites. Three of them will be Jinhae Free Economic Zone of Gyeongsangnam-do, a redevelopment area in Busan North Port, Yeosu Gyeongdo Tourism Complex in Jeollanam plus six sites in the free economic zone within Incheon.

The ministry has already received 34 requests for concept from February 27 to June 30. It seems that some of the companies which are vying for these licenses are well established gambling operators trying to break into the South Korean market.

All of the nine sites have until November 27 to submit all of their proposals which will require a minimum investment of more than 1 trillion won ($847.46 million). They also require a foreign investment of more than $500 million and certain levels of credit ratings need to be achieved in order to confirm competitive investment demands.

After the government will fully review all of these proposals the final number of licensees will be decided. It seems that these will be the last two casino licenses issued on the territory of South Korea for a long time.