Romney-backer and casino boss Sheldon Adelson unveils plans for new resort in China's Macau

Las Vegas casino boss Sheldon Adelson on Thursday unveiled plans to build a scaled down replica of the Eiffel Tower as part of a new $3 billion gambling resort in Macau.

The Las Vegas Sands Corp. chief spoke publicly for the first time about the new development as he opened a Sheraton hotel in the second phase of his latest $4.4 billion resort, the Sands Cotai Central, itself only five months old.

The Parisian, as it will be known, will add hundreds more gambling tables and hotel rooms to the former Portuguese colony at a time when China's economy is contracting and revenue from high-rolling gamblers is slowing.

Adelson dismissed concerns that the southern Chinese territory's boom days were over, saying "we would not be expanding if we did not think there was a future here".

Sands China already operates three casinos in Macau, the world's biggest gambling centre and the only place in China where casino gambling is legal.

Adelson gave no indication of when the Parisian would be built, but said it would cost $2.5-$3 billion, include 3,000 hotel rooms and feature a "50 percent scale-to-scale" replica of France's most famous monument.

Las Vegas already boasts a replica of the 320-metre (1,050 foot) tall tower, but Adelson said his creation would be better as its legs would be free-standing instead of passing through other buildings.

The Parisian is one of several major resorts on Adelson's drawing board, with further expansion planned in Europe, Japan, Korea and Vietnam. He said he would also invest in Taiwan if the government legalised casino gambling.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. earlier this month said it had chosen Madrid as the preferred location for a huge integrated gambling, hotel and conventions resort, dubbed Euro Vegas.