A DELEGATION of business ­leaders led by Cairns Mayor Bob Manning jets off to Hong Kong today to meet Aquis developers Tony and Justin Fung in a rally of support for the $8.15 billion project.

The venture suffered a serious setback yesterday when an offer to take over the Reef Hotel Casino in Cairns for $260 million lapsed after a deadline set by the Fungs for probity clearance could not be met by Queensland gaming officials.

Instead, they are buying the ­Canberra Casino for $6 million to use it as the vehicle to float Aquis on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2016 to try to raise the funds to build the Yorkeys Knob venture.

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The delegation of Cr Manning, Cairns Chamber of Commerce chairman Ron Tong, Advance Cairns chairman Trent Twomey, Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive Alex de Waal and Cairns Airport’s Kevin Brown and Janice Antonson, will be briefed by the Fungs about a review of Aquis and meet interested investors, ­including an Asian businessman with substantial holdings in the region.

It comes as the Cairns Regional Council identifies $1 billion of ­projects ready to go if Aquis gets the green light.

In other moves The Weekend Post reveals that the Fungs were in ­preliminary negotiations to buy the Pullman Cairns International Hotel and acquire waterfront land next to the Hilton Cairns hotel as part of the Reef casino takeover.

Tony Fung also met Australian Capital Territory gaming ­officials this week for formal interviews, with the Casino Canberra deal expected to be finalised before Christmas.

Cr Manning said some of the $1bn projects had or were in the process of development approvals while other proponents had started initial talks with the council.

media_camera PLANS: The proposed $8.15 billion Aquis Great Barrier Reef Resort planned for Yorkeys Knob in Cairns.

“Aquis would have triggered these projects to move ... now they will sit back and wait,’’ he said.

Cr Manning said they included expansion of the first $200m stage of the Aspial Spence St towers, the Cairns RSL $45m high rise project, hotel refurbishments, and other multistorey towers in the CBD and in North Cairns.

He lashed out at the State Government’s focus on the southeast corner.

“There are cranes on the skyline in Brisbane but as you travel north there is nothing in Bundaberg, nothing in Rockhampton, nothing in Mackay, nothing in Cairns,’’ he said.

“We have collateral damage at the moment, it’s not fatal, but it’s something Brisbane doesn’t understand. This state is a two-speed economy.

“I remain confident about Aquis, but it’s taking a different route and it is going to take longer ... possibly later in 2016.”

Other meetings in Asia are with Shanghai Airport officials to discuss direct flights, Dalian Wanda Group senior executives to negotiate two weekly direct flights to and from Wuhan, and Singapore’s Aspial Group chief executive Koh Wee Seng to be updated on the Spence St project.

An Aquis spokesman said Mr Fung had considered buying the Pullman Cairns International as part of the Reef casino expansion.

He said preliminary meetings were held with Ports North about waterfront land for a casino expansion.

“In light of the failure by Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation to meet the deadline for probity, which would have facilitated the acquisition of Reef, both these opportunities, and the associated investment in Cairns, are now unlikely.”

Cairns RSL chairman David Clifton said Aquis would be the stimulus for the club and residential tower.

Advance Cairns chairman Trent Twomey said the Fungs and Cairns had had “a bit of a rough week” and the meeting in Hong Kong would be “to shore up the city’s support of the project”.