Opposition fears BPL deal negotiations ‘in the dark’

By NEIL HARTNELL

Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE Opposition yesterday accused the Government of negotiating major multi-million dollar contracts “in the dark” as it emerged multiple parties have approached it with proposals for Bahamas Power & Light (BPL).

Duane Sands, the Free National Movement (FNM) chairman, asked “on what basis” has the Davis administration chosen to negotiate with a joint venture involving BISX-listed FOCOL Holdings and Shell over a potential public-private partnership (PPP) involving the supply of utility-scale solar power and liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel to BPL.

Speaking after it was reported that Bahamas Utilities Holdings, a FOCOL subsidiary, was reported to be “in the infancy stages” of negotiations with the Government, he told Tribune Business: “I’d like to know exactly how it is that a particular private provider winds up being the preferred partner for a national corporation.

“Perhaps there’s more to this story than they’re telling us, but in the absence of disclosure it becomes very important to understand on what basis does a single provider or a single private entity become the partner of the Government? We’d like to know.”

Tribune Business that resorts were either exceeding or matching both their 2023 targets and 2019’s pre-pandemic performance on five of the ten islands where it boasts member properties.

Based on figures for January and February 2023, he revealed that hotels on Abaco, Andros, Harbour Island, Acklins and San Salvador are ahead of predictions that they will achieve 100 percent of annual room nights sold, and 110 percent of room revenues, generated immediately before COVID hit.

Should those goals be realised, it would return the industry to a position matching - or exceeding - 2019 levels. Voicing optimism that this outcome will be realised, Mr Fountain said his confidence was based on increased airlift seat capacity for 2023, the removal of COVID-related travel restrictions that were still present in early 2022, and the return of group business via the meetings, incentives, conferences and events (MICE) segment. While initially disappointed that two major Family Island markets, Eleuthera and Exuma, appeared to have underperformed during the winter tourism season’s start, he added that “lifting the hood” revealed this was due to room inventory at one major property on either island being taken offline.

The Promotion Board chief, though, warned that “everybody has to work in sync” if 2023’s ambitions are to be realised, and said hotels must find ways to

SEE PAGE B5

Europe’s ‘retreat’ outpaces Latin growth for Bahamas

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

DR DUANE SANDS

Dr Sands said he was casting “no aspersions” on FOCOL, but said the nature of the revelation and seeming lack of process raised questions. Sir Franklyn Wilson, chairman of FOCOL Holdings, which operates the Shell brand, declined to comment when contacted by Tribune Business. “I’m just not in a position to comment on that,” he said. “I just cannot really go into that. I don’t want to say anything about it. I cannot.”