Singapore  - Resorts World at Sentosa on Tuesday announced a charity concert for December, ahead of the scheduled soft opening early 2010, putting pressure on rival casino Marina Bay Sands.

The Grand Theatre of the island resort would host a child charity concert December 19-21, Resorts World said in a statement, adding that the 4.5-billion-US-dollar resort construction was on schedule.

"The opening of the Grand Theatre is a nice surprise," a company spokesman said. "We are on track to keep our promise."

He said the other projects at the resort including a Universal Studio Theme Park, the world's biggest oceanarium and six hotels were proceeding as planned.

Last week, the developer of rival Marina Bay Sands, originally projected to open before the end of this year, delayed the launch of its resort to January or February due to a shortage of building materials and labour force.

Costs for that triple tower with huge convention and entertainment facilities in the heart of Singapore's financial district would total 5.5 billion US dollars, according to Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Both resorts are expected to boost Singapore's ailing tourism industry, which was hit hard by the global recession.(dpa)