The casino giant, which is majority-owned by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, was allowed to cover Dubai World's obligation under a waiver granted Friday by the project's senior lenders.
The payment buys MGM Mirage time to work through a funding crisis amid a slowdown in gambling revenue in Las Vegas.
Some workers were told Friday to pack their tools by the end of the day, but MGM Mirage said the move should allow construction to continue on the 67-acre hotel, retail, residential and casino complex on the Las Vegas Strip.
CityCenter, in which MGM Mirage and Dubai are equal partners, is to start opening in stages later this year. But its funding remains uncertain.
The partners must contribute $800 million more in equity to access a $1.8 billion credit facility that will complete funding for the project, MGM Mirage said.
"We will continue to make every effort to see that CityCenter is completed," Chief Executive Jim Murren said in a statement. "We continue to review with our partners all possible options to keep CityCenter fully funded and on a path to completion."
Fitch Ratings analyst Michael Paladino said MGM Mirage's move keeps the project afloat for now.
"Now it's back to the negotiating table with the lenders and Dubai World," he said.
Paladino said his "C" corporate credit rating on MGM Mirage, the lowest before a default rating, wasn't likely to improve.
The payment is one of many moves MGM Mirage has made this year to stave off serious financial concern, including finishing the sale of its Treasure Island casino to businessman Phil Ruffin for $775 million last week.
Ratings agencies, its partner in the CityCenter development and securities analysts remain worried about the future of MGM Mirage, which owes more than $13 billion and lost $1.15 billion in the fourth quarter of 2008.
It has struggled for months to secure the financing to finish the CityCenter project, which is providing thousands of construction jobs and is expected to offer 12,000 permanent jobs.
Soon after it reported last week that its auditors doubt its ability to continue as a going concern, MGM Mirage won a waiver from the terms on some of its debt, giving it until May 15 to fix its finances.
