Casino operator MGM Mirage said Wednesday it plans to develop a multibillion dollar resort casino project in Atlantic City, N.J.

The project, which will be called MGM Grand Atlantic City, will cost between $4.5 billion and $5 billion, not including the land value and associated expenses.

MGM will build the resort on a 72-acre site at Renaissance Pointe that the company owns, adjacent to its 50-percent owned Borgata.

About 60 acres of the site will be used for construction of the resort, with 12 more reserved for future development, which may include a residential component.

The resort will have three hotel towers with more than 3,000 rooms and suites. It will also include 5,000 slot machines, 200 table games, a 1,500-seat theater, restaurant, nightclub and entertainment, a spa, a 500,000 square foot retail area and a convention center.

Ground breaking is expected next year, with an anticipated opening in 2012.