Casino Grand Lisboa, the 25th casino in China's Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR), opened in Macao on Sunday.

The casino complex, located in downtown Macao, features 240 gaming tables and 480 slot machines, but without the regular setup of VIP rooms for the highrollers.

The hotel section boasts 420 guest rooms and suites, a number of dining venues specializing in a big variety of western and Chinese styles and luxury boutiques.

Casino Grand Lisboa, another flagship of local gaming czar Stanley Ho, is widely seen as the tycoon's counterattack to the foreign investments in the industry.

"The Grand Lisboa combines the best of our heritage with the world's latest technology," Ho said while addressing the opening ceremony, which grouped thousands of celebrities and gamblers.

Macao, with a population of 500,800, has a 150-year history of gaming industry and is the only part of China where casino gaming is legitimate.

Direct tax paid by the casinos dominates over 70 percent of the MSAR government's yearly revenue.

(Xinhua News Agency February 12, 2007)