SaskGaming is back in the black with $19.1m after casinos reopen

SaskGaming recently published its 2021-22 annual report, revealing that Saskatchewan’s public casino operator gained $19.1 million in net income by March 2022.

The Crown corporation managed to be back in the black after a severe loss of $13.4 million in 2020-21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic measures, such as casinos closures. It now sees an increase of $22.9 million from last year’s net loss with the reopening of Casino Regina and Casino Moose Jaw back in June 2021.

“SaskGaming saw steady improvement in 2021-22, as we emerged from the era of pandemic-related restrictions,” said Minister Responsible for SaskGaming, Don Morgan.

“With nearly a full year of operations under its belt, SaskGaming was able to contribute $9.6 million to the province’s General Revenue Fund to support the First Nations Trust, Community Initiatives Fund and Clarence Campeau Development Fund.”

The company managed to pull in $77.8 million in revenue and spent $58.7 million within this fiscal year. After being deduced from the sum contributed to the General Revenue Fund, the remaining $9.5 million is kept by the company as retained earnings.

“It’s almost been a full year of operations. Being temporarily closed for most of that first quarter was impactful, but as you can tell from our net income, it has significantly improved over the previous year,” said Shanna Schulhauser, spokesperson for SaskGaming. “It’s always a great situation when you’re able to get back up operating and turning a profit for the people of the province.

In the previous fiscal year, the company sent no monetary contribution to the government and was forced to temporarily lay off 507 permanent employees. With the reopening in June, 243 of these employees were recalled and the remaining 327 were also offered a recall a month after.

For the next fiscal year, SaskGaming is aiming to rake in $101.8 million in revenue through renovations and technology upgrades to boost guest experiences.