Travel agency H.I.S. Corp. says it will open talks on supporting the restructuring of the Huis Ten Bosch theme park in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture.
"At this time, we have made no decision to support the management of Huis Ten Bosch Co." H.I.S. said in a statement Wednesday.
Shigeaki Momoo, a lawyer supervising the facility's restructuring, said he will "make utmost efforts to reach a basic agreement" on support from H.I.S.
The Tokyo-based travel agency might make a decision on the restructuring project by the end of this month, company sources said.
H.I.S. will decline if the estimated cost of rebuilding the park is larger than expected, the sources said.
After opening in 1992, the theme park, which reproduces a Dutch cityscape, failed and filed for bankruptcy under the Corporate Rehabilitation Law in 2003 as its huge initial investment costs continued to drag down its business.
The operator has been trying to turn the business around with financial support from Nomura Principal Finance Co., an investment company owned by Nomura Holdings Inc.
But since its management woes have deepened since the onset of the global financial crisis, the city government officially asked H.I.S. in December for financial assistance.