(Reuters) - New Zealand casino operator SkyCity Entertainment Group <SKC.NZ> said on Tuesday construction of a convention centre would see fresh delays as it flagged a likely 3 percent growth in full-year core earnings.
Construction of the New Zealand International Convention Centre and Hobson Street hotel projects is now expected to complete in December 2019, the company said in a trading update.
Its investment in the projects was expected to be in line with the original budget of around NZ$703 million ($494 million), SkyCity said.
The convention centre is being built by Fletcher Building Ltd <FBU.NZ> <FBU.AX>, New Zealand's biggest builder, which has struggled with delays and cost over-runs at the job.
"We continue to work with SkyCity to agree a completion date and the project losses remain within the provisions previously announced," Fletcher Building said in an emailed statement.
SkyCity also reported a 4.6 percent rise in year-to-date revenue, and said its Auckland business performed well in the third quarter but was impacted by a weak performance in table games during April.
The company flagged a slight downward adjustment to historical turnover for its international business after uncovering an error in the calculation over the past three years.
SkyCity shares traded 0.3 percent lower and Fletcher shares were 1.3 percent lower at lunchtime, while the broader New Zealand bourse <.NZ50> was flat.
(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru, Additional reporting by Tom Westbrook in Sydney; Editing by Chris Reese, Rosalba O'Brien and Gopakumar Warrier)
