An unnamed Maltese minister has asked for a meeting with the mayor of Taormina, which the mayor, Mauro Passalaqua, understood to be in relation to a bid by the Dragonara Casino for the management of a kursaal which may be set up in the Sicilian town of Taormina.

This news was given by journalist Anna Maria Rengo in an edition of gioconews.it but was later (at around 11am yesterday) replaced with a declaration by the manager of the Casino Portomaso, Gianfranco Scordato, who said that such interest by the Dragonara Casino was “inopportune” seeing that the Dragonara Casino itself is facing adjudication over who will manage it in the coming years.

In the first news item, posted on Thursday afternoon, Ms Rengo had said that more and more interest has been generated by the competition for the future management of the kursaal in Taormina.

The Casino di Venezia, which also has a subsidiary in Malta, had expressed interest, as had the Casino di Sanremo, which should be presenting its own detailed business plan.

It was here that Ms Rengo added the “excellent” candidature of the Dragonara Casino, whose building belongs to the government of Malta and whose 10-year future management is currently under consideration. The casino is being managed up to the end of this year by the Barrière Group.

Ms Rengo said it was “curious” how, with its future still undecided, the Dragonara Casino could think about business abroad but, she added, “the news is certain”.

She quoted Taormina mayor Mauro Passalaqua, who said he has received offers of meetings, including one from a Maltese minister. The mayor said the town council would evaluate all offers and then take its decision. The Italian senate has lately declined to approve an amendment to the Italian Budget Bill, which included approving the opening of new casinos in Italy.

Efforts to contact the mayor yesterday proved futile.

But Casino Portomaso manager Gianfranco Scordato was reported yesterday as being very sceptical about the whole thing. “The announcement of an interest expressed in the management of the Taormina kursaal by the Dragonara Casino seems to us as inopportune and, above all, illegitimate.

“None of the contenders, including the actual management (the French Barrière Group) has at this moment any right to declare an interest, let alone make commitments on behalf and in the name of the Dragonara Casino.

“We are at the moment in the final phases of the adjudication of the management concession and any ‘negotiation’ would thus be both out of place and very dubious. Let us wait first to see who wins the adjudication and only then can future strategies be brought to the fore.”

Tomino Ltd, which owns two of the four casinos in Malta, the Casino Portomaso and the Oracle, is itself one of the contenders for the Dragonara Casino.

In further comments to the Italian journalist, Mr Scordato seemed to doubt the wisdom of adding the management of the Taormina kursaal to the management of the Dragonara Casino. Where branding is concerned, Taormina has a special appeal, especially for the Maltese, but he would prefer looking towards the major cities of Sicily – Palermo, Catania and Messina – as core targets for the Maltese casinos (“our targets are not the tourists, nor those enamoured of Greek theatres nor those who love belle époque buildings”), in other words, easy to reach locations, with other complementary attractions and ample parking space. “Not to take all this into account is, in my opinion, a big mistake and may lead those who make it to heavy losses and disillusionment.”