Albania’s gambling regulator has launched a tender for casino operators looking to open in the country’s capital Tirana.

Last week, the Albanian Gambling Supervision Authority published a notice inviting casino operators to submit proposals for swanky gaming venues in a designated area in the center of the capital. The submissions must be received by the regulator by October 22, with the review of these documents commencing the following day.

Under the legislation Albania approved earlier this month, companies wishing to conduct casino operations in Tirana must have experience in this field and capital reserves of ALL1.2b (US$11.4m), strongly suggesting that nobody’s expecting a Macau-style $4b integrated resort here.

Over the past decade, Albania’s collection of several dozen small casinos was systematically purged out of existence, along with most other forms of gambling, including online gambling. By 2019, the market was down to a single casino in Tirana’s Regency Hotel, and that venue’s license recently expired.