Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Crown Ltd., Australia’s biggest casino owner, said it expects to write down about A$450 million ($300 million) from its minority stakes in U.S. casinos, giving the investments a new value of A$100 million.

“The decline in valuations has been precipitated by the current economic conditions in the U.S.,” the Sydney-based company said in a statement to the Australian stock exchange today. “The decline also reflects the uncertainty regarding the future capital structure of Stations Casinos following its announcement last week concerning a proposal to its bondholders to restructure its debt.”

Crown owns a 19.6 percent interest in FontaineBleau Resorts LLC, 4.9 percent in Stations Casinos and 2.5 percent in Harrah’s Entertainment Inc., the statement said. The writedowns, which will not affect dividends, will be included in Crown’s first- half results, to be released Feb. 27.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jason Scott in Perth at jscott14@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: February 9, 2009 04:19 EST