MONDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2024
blindsided by new tourist extra stay fee
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
BAHAMIAN mari-
nas were “nailed” by the Immigration Department’s sudden imposition of a $200 fee for tourists seeking to extend their stay in this nation despite the measure being unveiled in the Budget.
Peter Maury, the Association of Bahamas Marinas (ABM) president, told Tribune Business that the sector and its clients were blindsided by the September 18, 2024, implementation of a $200 non-refundable processing fee for all visitors applying to extend their stay in this country beyond the time for which they were originally admitted.
Describing the move as “anti-tourism”, on the basis that the fee effectively penalises visitors for staying in The Bahamas longer and spending more money in local
communities, he argued that it had compounded boating/yachting perceptions that the country is becoming cost “prohibitive” following the recent imposition of higher yacht charter levies and other increased taxes and fees.
Mr Maury told this newspaper that the September 18 implementation, which was accompanied by little to no warning, had undermined ABM, industry and Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation efforts to attract high-end boats and yachts to The Bahamas and away
from the Mediterranean through their attendance one week later at the Monaco Boat Show.
However, the ABM chief admitted he was “unaware” that Prime Minister Philip Davis KC had warned the measure was coming when he unveiled the 2024-2025 Budget at the end of May.
“The Immigration Department will also implement a Visitors Stay extension application fee of $200. This will cover the costs of issuing a visitors’ card,” Mr Davis explained.
Alfred Sears KC, minister of Immigration and national insurance, could not be reached for comment before press time last night and also did not respond to messages. However, it is standard practice for the Immigration Department to charge a non-refundable processing fee - whether $200 or another sum - to cover the costs, and recover the expense, associated with various permit application types.
And The Bahamas, like all sovereign states, has the right to at all times regulate and manage its borders, determine who is within its territory and decide how long it will permit them to stay. And the $200 one-time fee, in and of itself, is hardly a huge sum for visiting tourists and boat crews to pay if they decide to extend their stay and original cruising permit.
$985m project’s ‘serious adverse impact’ potential
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor
ABACO’S Chamber of Commerce president is “hoping and praying” that the developers of a $985m south Abaco resort pro ject “do everything they can to preserve the natural beauty” of that area.
Former BPL director wins $600k termination payout
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
A FORMER Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) executive director, who alleged he was terminated because of his “perceived political affiliation” with the FNM and Desmond Bannister, has won a near-$600,000 payout. Patrick Rollins yesterday told Tribune Business that “justice prevailed” after Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder, in a September 30 verdict from the Supreme Court, awarded him 100 percent of his “breach of contract” claim after finding the state-owned energy monopoly violated his fixed-term employment conditions.
The former executive director, who earned an annual $180,000 salary prior to his January 21, 2022, dismissal alleged in his witness statement that he was warned by thenBPL chairman, Pedro Rolle, in December 2021 that unidentified members of the Davis Cabinet were
pushing for both himself and former chief executive, Whitney Heastie, to be removed.
Both men had been appointed to their posts by the former Minnis administration, and Mr Rollins had asserted: “Chairman Rolle informed me that ‘certain people in Cabinet were asking for your head and CEO Heastie’s head because, you know, you are Desmond’s boy’.” He added that Mr Rolle asked him what sort of compensation he was willing to accept as BPL would not pay the balance of his three-year contract.
However, Sir Ian rejected Mr Rollins’ claim that his dismissal, and the
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor
THE Mosko Group is aiming to develop a beach club, featuring a zip line attraction in front of a public beach, on land it owns between Sandyport and Caves Village. Vakis Ltd, which is the group’s real estate development and leasing arm for properties such as Harbour Bay Shopping Centre, has unveiled plans for the 7.272-acre project on New Providence’s north coast at a location known as Rock Point. The development, which requires approval from the Town Planning Committee and other planning regulators to be rezoned from ‘residential’ to ‘commercial’ before it can proceed, will also feature swimming pools; a beach bar; cabanas, loungers and a conch stand; a gift shop; vehicle parking
Minister defends raised fees for private aviation
By FAY SIMMONS
A CABINET minister has defended the increased fees imposed on private aviation visitors as essential to financing much-needed capital improvements at The Bahamas’ airports. Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs, appeared to dismiss the travel advisory unveiled
against The Bahamas over the fees by the world’s largest private pilot body as he branded them a “very small focus group”.
Speaking at the Office of the Prime Minister’s weekly press briefing, Mr Halkitis maintained that the Davis administration is investing “hundreds of millions” of taxpayer dollars to improve Family Island airport infrastructure as he downplayed the group’s influence. “I didn’t see that, and I doubt it’s sort of an Aircraft
Owners Association,” said Mr Halkitis. “I think it might be a very small focus group of particular individuals who have a particular issue, but I don’t think it’s called the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. That would involve a very broad spectrum of owners. I think it’s a very small, narrow group.”
Mr Halkitis seemed not to have read, or been briefed on, an advisory from a group representing 300,000 plane owners and pilots.
“But I’ll say this,” he added. “Having said that, the Government of ours is investing hundreds of millions of dollars. We’ve done it over the years, hundreds of millions of dollars, in improving airport infrastructure throughout our Family Islands; for safety to improve airlift, to promote those economies in those islands. Hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Mr Halkitis added that Family Island airports have to be upgraded to
maintain Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safety standards, and private pilots should understand that fees have to be increased to fund the renovations.
“As you know, with our international airports, we have to maintain certain levels of security so that we can pass the Federal Aviation Administration tests and standards,” said Mr Halkitis. “We have to meet those and so we believe it’s not unreasonable to say to individuals who own private aircraft, or own their own planes, that they should when the Government of Bahamas seeks to amend fees that have been in existence, and some have gone unchanged, in some cases, 30, 40, 50 years, that we seek to amend those fees for private people who own their own private aircraft, who fly the private aircraft into these airports that we’re investing in.”
The world’s largest private pilots group has issued a “travel advisory” alert on The Bahamas over “the substantial and egregious” fee increases imposed on the sector in the 2024-2025 Budget.
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), which represents between 300,000 to 400,000 private plane owners and pilots, said it “feels a responsibility” to warn an industry that generates one out of every six stopover tourists to The Bahamas about “the significant fees they will pay” upon landing in this nation.
And the Association implied it had been forced to adopt this stance because of “little to no response from the Bahamian government”, as well as Prime Minister Philip Davis KC, to its pleas to adjust hikes that represent a threefold and six-fold increase, respectively, on the previous Customs fee structure for private aviation which was $50 “inbound” and zero “outbound”
Mr Halkitis, however, maintained that the increased fees are “reasonable” but said the concerns of a group that contributes to the economy are worth consideration.
“You, the Bahamian taxpayer, are investing hundreds of millions of dollars to upgrade,” he said. “We don’t think it’s unreasonable for them to pay a reasonable fee to use it.
“I personally, of course, when people are visiting our country and they’re contributing in some way, they have a concern, we listen. We don’t cut them off, we listen. But we believe that our actions in terms of those adjustments that we need for private aircraft, people who own their own planes and fly them into our country, they’re reasonable.”
The fee increases, unveiled as part of the Customs Management (Amendment) Regulations 2024, represent a threefold and six-fold increase, respectively, on the previous Customs fee structure for private aviation which was $50 “inbound” and zero “outbound”.
Now, with the changes, commercial jets will have to pay a $50 “inbound” and $50 “outbound” fee for a total of $100. However, a private plane with four seats or less “including all seats in the cabin” is now faced with paying $75 each way for a total of $150.
That is slightly more than the $100 fee for a commercial jet, but private aircraft with more than four seats “including all seats in the cabin” now face having to pay $150 “inbound” and “outbound” fees to Customs for a total $300. So-called “recreational” flights will only pay $150 “inbound”, but it is unclear what this definition means and how it will be applied.
EXUMA RESORT NEIGHBOURS AT ODDS ON PROJECT’S PLANS
By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter
TWO neighbouring Exuma resort developments are at odds over the larger project’s plans for the location of its northern dock and scale of its buildout plans.
Felipe MacLean, Yntegra Group’s founder and chief executive, pledged that his Big Sampson Cay project is committed to “eco-sensitivity” and that all concerns raised by Turtlegrass Resort and Island Club and local environmentalists will be answered.
He spoke out after the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection (DEPP) public consultation on his group’s $200m Rosewood-branded project saw the neighbouring development and environmentalists object to its density and plans to dredge its northern marina site. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) revealed plans to dredge almost 240,000 cubic yards of fill to create two marinas,
Casuarina McKinneyLambert, executive director of BREEF (Bahamas Reef Environmental Educational Foundation), raised concerns about the damage dredging the area would have on the coral reefs, seagrass meadows and conch breeding sites as well as inland mangroves.
“This cay is Crown Land with considerable areas of sensitive and national important habitats, especially coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass areas,” said Mrs McKinney-Lambert. “How does this project align with out national wetlands policy and our commitment to protecting seagrass, mangroves and coral reefs?”
Stacey Moultrie, environmental consultant, said she became familiar with the site while working on the EIA for the neighbouring Turtlegrass project and saw the thriving seagrass meadow that will be dredged to create the northern marina.
“We have been told as environmental consultants that seagrass beds are now sacred and they are
not to be touched because they form the basis of the new carbon market for The Bahamas and are supposed to generate income for the country,” said Ms Moultrie.
“This cay has significant biodiversity, terrestrial and marine life; the EIA confirms that, as well as other studies done in the area. My contention is that the scale of the project is not compatible with the significant biodiversity on the cay.”
Bob Coughlin, Turtlegrass Resort’s principal, said the ocean current in the area coupled with its biodiversity makes Yntegra’s location for the northern dock, which will also be used as an industrial dock, inappropriate. He suggested Rosewood Exuma use a site on the southern end of the island, which will not require dredging and is not directly in view of Turtlegrass guests, be used.
“I personally think this cut in terms of its biodiversity with the acres of seagrass, with a strong current, this is not an appropriate place to put
an industrial dock,” said Mr Coughlin.
“You can put it on the south end of the island without coming in and dredging, and really destroying our front door and affecting our beaches. There is no accounting for the fact that their property is directly
adjacent, one foot away, from our property and if you threw a stick in the water where they’re going to dredge, it would be on our beach in less than two minutes, maybe less than a minute-and-a-half from the strength of the current.”
Mr Coughlin said his $75m low density, ecofriendly resort is “not compatible” with Rosewood Exuma’s current plans, and placing an industrial dock so close to where his clients would conduct
BTC HONOURS CLIENTS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE WORKERS
THE Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) last week celebrated Customer Experience (CX) Day to show its appreciation for staff and subscriber clients.
Customers visiting BTC’s retail stores at the Mall at Marathon, Southwest Plaza, and Pioneer’s Way in Grand Bahama were honoured on October 1 through several in-store promotions that included gas vouchers, gift cards and movie tickets.
Sameer Bhatti, BTC’s chief executive, said: “Customers are at the heart of everything that we do here at BTC. As we celebrated CX Day, we wanted to acknowledge customers and thank them for their loyalty to us. Whether it’s mobile or fixed services, we want to thank them for choosing us. We continue to raise the bar for ourselves and the services that we
provide, and this CX Day we want to say thank you.”
In addition to celebrating customers at its retail stores, BTC’s CX team hosted several customers to a special “lunch and learn” session at the Balmoral
Club. They were given the opportunity to learn more about BTC products and, in turn,gave feedback about the services they currently use.
K. Teneile
Simmons, BTC’s head of customer
BTC’s Grand Bahama call centre team. experience, said: “As a company, we value our employees as well as our customers. CX Day is celebrated globally and is two-fold. It’s for us to celebrate our customers and to recognise our CX team. There is no better way to understand how well we are doing than to listen to the people that we serve.”
Susan Simmons, a BTC customer who attended the ‘lunch and learn’ event, said: “I am here today because BTC looks after its customers. They have constantly communicated with me, and they are always reaching out to ensure that I am happy with the service
that is rendered, so for this I am grateful.”
Dr Bridgette Rolle, another BTC customer, added: “I can certainly give credit to BTC and its roaming partner because when everyone on my trip was unable to get service on their phone at the top of the mountain, here I was roaming and receiving messages, so BTC has certainly done it again.”
BTC said that as part of efforts to improve and modernise the customer experience it earlier this year introduced its fullyrevamped MyBTC mobile app to make customer interactions as seamless and easy as possible.
It added that the app is a one-stop shop for all mobile and fixed services. Customers can top-up accounts, and access and manage their payments in one spot. BTC has made it easier for customers to contact the company through its revamped What’s App Chat and is working on a fully upgraded interactive voice response system for its contact centre. CX Day is observed globally on the first Tuesday of October and is known for companies rolling out the red carpet as they celebrate customers and recognise the efforts of hard working CX employees.
BTC chief executive, Sameer Bhatti, addresses customers at a recent event held at Balmoral to commemorate CX Day on October 1.
BTC staff pose with several customers following a recent CX Day session held at Balmoral Club.
HAPPY SECOND PLACE
By CHRIS ILLING CCO @ ActivTrades Corp
FAR more jobs were created in the US in September than expected. Some 254,000 new non-agricultural jobs were added, according to the government’s labour market report published last Friday. These numbers were good news for the financial markets worldwide, and the major indices closed out the week on a positive note and a light upswing.
One man benefited more than others during last week: Mark Zuckerberg is in second place in the ranking of the wealthiest people in the world for the first time. This is the result of the new “Billionaires Index” from the Bloomberg agency, which measures the wealth of the super rich. Zuckerberg now has a fortune of $206bn, mainly thanks to the jump in the price of Meta shares. The social media group posted price gains of 83 percent within a year and recently marked one record high
after another. This means that Zuckerberg’s fortune grew more than any other in the rankings of the super rich, namely by $78bn. The Meta chief executive overtook Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, who is the third richest person in the world with $205bn, one less than Zuckerberg. Technology companies that spend a lot of money on artificial intelligence (AI), and want to remain popular with investors, should take a leaf out of Meta Platforms’ (Facebook) book. Shares of
the Mark Zuckerberg-led company are up 14 percent during the last 30 days, far outpacing the shares of big technology companies despite the firm reporting a further increase in capital spending and promising to spend even more in the future. It seems that the difference for Meta is that Mark Zuckerberg was better able to convince investors that AI is helping to improve results in his core business - digital advertising. Other companies such as Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet
were not able to articulate the AI upswing so well. Meta is using AI to improve the way its advertisers can find interested users, thereby increasing efficiency in this area, which accounts for almost all the company’s revenue. The company also leverages its own rich language models for better content recommendations, which help drive engagement on Facebook and Instagram. The savvy investor will keep an eye on Mr Zuckerberg’s companies.
Family Island Chambers detail utilities difficulties
By ANNELIA NIXON anixon@tribunemedia.net
FAMILY Island
Chambers of Commerce presidents have called for critical electricity, water and communications upgrades to help their respective island economies advance/
Speaking at the annual National Conclave of Chambers of Commerce in The Bahamas, Chamber heads fromGrand Bahama and Abaco said their islands are still experiencing constant issues with electricity interruptions and telephone and internet service.
Both Daphne DeGregory-Miaoulis, president of Abaco’s Chamber, and Emmitt Saunders, executive director of the Exuma Chamber, said reliable Internet is a necessity for not just locals but tourists as well.
“While the overall service has been operating at manageable levels, at best, the real challenge that we face in the Exumas on a daily basis is acceptable Internet service,” Mr Saunders said. “This is important from a few fronts. Everything needed to make better informed decisions can be found in the Internet.
“Our visitors need to be in contact with their families. Our businesses need to overcome distances and expand resources, and from a local community perspective, it’s a necessary that utilities are open 24 hours. Competition is a good thing. We have seen positive improvement in this area over the last few years with the arrival of another provider.”
Ms DeGregory-Miaoulis added that with power and communication issues, she is concerned about cashless payments being an option on Abaco. Adding to the utility woes, she said, Abaconians are also experiencing a high salt content in their water.
“If we are going to be a premier destination or we’re going to attract and provide the services that families need, water is an essential,” she said. “Potable water is an essential. We have a high salt content apparently in some of our water in Abaco. I don’t know that water has been properly regulated for safety. That’s something that needs to be checked.
“But it would be good if the Government or the Water & Sewerage Corporation could actually
provide us with a breakdown of the water analysis of the water in mainland Abaco or in the cays so that people could have that comfort zone level that what they’re drinking, what they’re bathing in, what they’re cooking with,is healthy.”
Mr Saunders commented on healthcare in Exuma, pointing out that although the island has a new public health facility it has many shortcomings.
“A public medical facility that operates efficiently and effectively is an essential component in any island chain. We do have, opened recently, a multi-million dollar first-class healthcare facility but there are challenges. Lack of resources to support expanding health information technology and workforce shortages. Regarding options, Doctors Hospital recently opened site in Exuma,” he added.
Mrs DeGregory-Miaoulis said the Abaco Cays have become a tourism hub and they have experienced a 14 percent increase in the industry in 2023.
“This year marked a historic milestone, significantly boosting total arrivals and highlighting The Bahamas as a premier destination,”
she said. “Abaco ranks number two in the country for stopover visitors and international flight destinations. Abaco is becoming more accessible with new airline routes, including twice daily flights from Miami and daily flights from Charlotte or Lauderdale or Denver and Tampa.
“The economic boost from rising visitor numbers leads to increased spending at local hotels, restaurants and shops, fostering sustainable growth and prosperity in our communities across the islands of Abaco.”
Mr Saunders said Exuma has also experienced an increase in arrivals by more than 100 percent, which he said is due to an increase in airlift from major cities.
“You see where we have a non-stop air service for major metropolitan cities in the US and Canada. We have amply served by boat transportation from both Nassau and South Florida. The Chamber was a major lobbying force in getting Bahamasair to introduce the Nassau service from Fort Lauderdale into Georgetown.”
With booming tourism comes other challenges. Now, businesses within the sector are looking for
skilled workers. Both Mr Saunders and Mrs DeGregory-Miaoulis made this point with the latter saying: “Well, one of the biggest problems that we’ve had are the illegal immigrants. We are not getting rid of them. We’re just sending them out and they’re coming back.
“What we need to do, in my opinion, is to try to regulate those that have
skills that can find proper employment and have them be a part of the community, because it’s obvious that they’re not there because they’re not making money. People are hiring them. And the Government needs to stop spending money having them repatriated, but have the employers take responsibility and hire them and regulate them.“
$985m project’s ‘serious adverse impact’ potential
Daphne DeGregoryMiaoulis told Tribune
Business it would be sound business sense for the Kakona investors to safeguard the very environment that attracted them to the location after their recentlypublished Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) warned construction activities could have “severe adverse impacts” at the three sites they plan to develop.
Public consultation on the South Abaco Land Development Company’s (SALDCO) EIA is scheduled for October 24, 2024, at 6pm at the Sandy Point community centre, and Mrs DeGregory-Miaoulis said it was vital the Government ensure the developers have the necessary finances, resources and expertise to avoid “the worst case scenario” of an unfinished development and scarred landscape.
Acknowledging that the developers are targeting locations close to the Abaco National Park, an area of major ecological significance that contains breeding and nesting grounds for multiple bird species, including the Abaco parrot, she told this newspaper that a “balance” must be struck between environmental preservation and creating much-needed jobs and economic activity in that part of the island.
The Kakona project, for which a Heads of Agreement was signed in late 2022, has been “kicking around” for at least 17 years in various guises and first surfaced in 2007 - just prior to the financial crisis and 2008-2009 recession - under
an entity called the Valencia Group. Its lead principals now are the Harrell Family Trust, and a Town Meeting for the project was held in Abaco during January 2023. Nothing was heard subsequently until last week’s release of the EIA, compiled by Bahamas-based consultants Bron Ltd, and the date for its public hearing. Mrs DeGregory-Miaoulis said the developers appear “committed”, given that they have stayed the course for 17 years, but questions remain over the environmental impact and the project’s sustainability given its scale.
The EIA, which Tribune Business has reviewed, confirms that South Abaco Land Development Company plans to develop three sites - one on Abaco’s south-western tip, and two on the eastern side. To the west, Leeward Harbour will be located one mile south of Sandy Point with its northern boundary immediately adjacent to the community’s air strip. Among the planned amenities is a 225slip marina.
The project, which will be flagged by the high-end Setai resort brand, also intends to develop two sites to be called High Bank Bay and Conch Sound Point on the Abaco’s south-eastern tip. The former will cover 503 acres, and feature a 30-room resort, 25 cottages and 150 residential lots available for sale, plus an 18-hole golf course.
Conch Sound Point, meanwhile, is a 375-acre tract that will include another hotel, 25 cottage and 100 “private estate lots”. The EIA confirms that High Bank Bay
“abuts” the Abaco National Park on its western boundary, and acknowledges that “the park protects a critical breeding habitat for the endemic Abaco Parrot”.
While detailing a series of mitigation strategies that “have the potential to lessen and even eradicate environmental impacts” from the project’s development activities, the EIA added: “The potential socio-economic benefits of this project are muchneeded among the locals and stakeholders of South Abaco.
“Despite the potentially adverse impacts associated with the construction and operation of the proposed project, the overall design of the project and developer’s commitment to a low density, low impact residential community will allow for effective mitigation strategies to be employed during construction and operations phases of the project.”
Breaking down Kakona’s impact by site, the EIA said: “The project’s activities at Leeward Harbour, which have the potential to cause severe adverse impacts, include impacts to terrestrial and marine habitats due to upland clearing and creation of upland infrastructure associated with the marina and aerodrome, as well as the impact to the marine environment due to the creation of the marina and flushing channels....
“The proposed project development at High Bank Bay and Conch Sound Point will have some moderate to severe impacts on-site and potentially on the immediate environments surrounding the properties. High Bank Bay
and Conch Sound Point project activities which have the potential to cause severe adverse impacts include impacts to terrestrial habitats and bird populations due to land clearing during the creation of the golf practice courses and upland infrastructure.”
Historical ruins could also be affected by construction and road clearing. It is unclear, though, whether the Kakona developers have assembled all the land their ambitions require. In particular, the EIA states that they are still in talks with the Government to acquire more than 47 acres of Treasury Land that are vital to facilitating the planned Leeward Harbour marina.
“Currently, the developer owns approximately 400 acres at the High Bank Bay and approximately 300 acres at the Conch Sound Point locations,” the EIA says. “The Leeward Harbour site consists of approximately 48.74 acres and is owned by Leeward Harbour Investments. This area is under contract with closing to occur by July 2024.
“Another parcel, of which approximately 52.54 acres is Treasury Land with the addition of another fiveacre privately held tract, is under negotiation. The total parcel, including the Leeward Harbour Investments tract, is approximately 105 acres. The developer is in the process of negotiating the purchase of this land per an approval from the Bahamas Investment Authority (BIA).
“Additionally, the developer has an approval to purchase - and has under contract - approximately 75 acres at Conch Sound Point, approximately 103 acres at High Bank Bay, and approximately 105 acres at Leeward Harbour made up of privately held and Treasury land.”
This was confirmed by Robert Coakley, an attorney with SALDCO’s lawyers, Davis & Co,
confirmed in a May 8, 2023, letter to the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection (DEPP) and Forestry Unit that the Treasury Land purchase was to “facilitate its proposed marina”.
“There’s been a tremendous amount of concern,” Mrs DeGregory-Miaoulis told Tribune Business of the Kakona proposal.
“While it’s been said it will never get approved because there’s so much opposition to it from the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) and everyone in the environmental business, as far as south Abaco and Sandy Point are concerned they need opportunities and they need investment.
“From a business standpoint, it’s a bit unfortunate it is where it is located because of all the controversy as Sandy Point and the southern part of the island needs major development. They’re looking at dredging harbours and marinas, and a lot of things that could potentially damage the environment, but there’s a balance with bringing development and business.
“There’s two sides of the coin and two outlooks,” the Abaco Chamber president said. “I, for one, have tremendous respect for the environment but I also understand the need for development and communities to have expansion. There are those people who believe they should have business opportunities and those who believe it shouldn’t happen in that area. I have to say it’s a very mixed view.”
The EIA said the Kakona development is forecast to boost Bahamian economic output, or gross domestic product (GDP), by $366m over the ten-year, $985m construction build-out. Construction activity alone, it added, is estimated to generate a $264m GDP boost over that period.
“Direct construction employment averages over 736 persons, peaking
at 1,000 jobs for Bahamians,” the EIA said. “Over a 23-year period, this new project will generate an estimated $1.9bn in government revenues, the majority of which will come from import duties.” However, these projections appear to be based on a dated Tourism Economics analysis from 2007.
“We can only hope and pray they will do minimal damage to the environment,” Mrs DeGregory-Miaoulis told Tribune Business, “and the economic outcomes and long-term benefits will outweigh whatever damage there is going to be.
“Every time you disturb nature there’s going to be some impact. We just have to hope and pray the developer is going to do everything they can to preserve the natural beauty which is what attracted them there in the first place. It’s going to be just as important to them as anyone else because they are the ones looking to benefit from that location so they have to do everything they can to preserve it.
“God forbid they go in and tear everything up. I just hope they have all the finances and permits approved before they do anything. The worst case scenario will be if they go in and disturb everything and it doesn’t come to fruition. Do they have the resources? Are they going to run out of money or do it stage by stage in a sustainable way?” she asked.
“It [the project] has been kicking around for a number of years, which leads you to believe they are really committed. Why would someone stick with it this long if they are not committed? But that’s the thing. Are they going to allow each phase to fully develop before they start tearing up our environment?”
Dow rallies to a record after a blockbuster jobs report
By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer
U.S. stocks rallied Friday after a surprisingly strong report on the U.S. job market raised optimism about the economy.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% and got close to its alltime high set on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 341 points, or 0.8%, to set its own record, while the Nasdaq composite clambered 1.2% higher.
Leading the way were banks, airlines, cruise-ship
operators and other companies whose profits can benefit the most from a stronger economy where people are working and better able to pay for things. Norwegian Cruise Line steamed 4.9% higher, JPMorgan Chase rose 3.5% and the small companies in the Russell 2000 index gained 1.5%. They helped stock indexes claw back losses from earlier in the week, caused by worries that worsening tensions in the Middle East could lead to
disruptions in the global flow of oil. Crude prices rose again Friday, but the moves were more modest than earlier in the week, as the world continued its wait to see how Israel will respond to Iran's missile attack.
In the meantime, the strength of the U.S. economy reclaimed its spot as the top mover of markets. Treasury yields soared in the bond market after the U.S. government said employers added 254,000 more jobs to their payrolls
last month than they cut. That was an acceleration from August's hiring pace of 159,000 and blew past economists' forecasts. It was a "grand slam" of a report, according to Lindsay Rosner, head of multi-sector investing within Goldman Sachs Asset Management. She said policy makers at the Federal Reserve, who have been trying to pull off the difficult feat of keeping the economy humming while getting inflation under control, "must be smiling."
Friday's report capped a week of mostly encouraging data on the economy, helping to allay one of Wall Street's top questions: Can the job market continue to hold up after the Fed earlier kept interest rates at a two-decade high?
Before Friday's jobs report, the general trend had been a slowdown in hiring by U.S. employers. That's not surprising given how hard the Fed pressed the brakes on the economy through higher rates in order to stamp out high inflation.
But Friday's blowout numbers bolstered hope that the U.S. economy will keep growing, particularly now that the Fed has begun cutting interest rates to give it more juice. The Fed last month lowered its main interest rate for the first time in more than four years and indicated more cuts will arrive through next year.
Friday's jobs report was so strong that it pushed traders to abandon bets that the Fed will deliver another larger-than-usual cut to interest rates at its next meeting. They're now
forecasting zero chance for a cut of half a percentage point, according to data from CME Group. Just a week ago, they were saying it was better than a coin flip's chance.
"This report tells the Fed that they still need to be careful as a strong labor market along with sticky housing/shelter data shows that it won't be easy to engineer meaningfully lower inflation from here in the nearer term," according to Scott Wren, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute. At Bank of America, economist Aditya Bhave expects the Fed to stop cutting its target for the federal funds rate when it hits a range of 3% to 3.25%. That's a quarter of a percentage point higher than the bottom that he was earlier forecasting. The federal funds rate is currently sitting in a range of 4.75% to 5%.
Such diminished expectations for future cuts sent the yield on the two-year Treasury shooting up to 3.93% from 3.71% late Thursday. The 10-year yield jumped to 3.97% from 3.85%.
‘NAILED’: MARINAS BLINDSIDED BY NEW TOURIST EXTRA STAY FEE
However, Mr Maury said the new $200 fee has added “inconvenience” to the process as the Immigration flyer confirming its September 18, 2024, introduction appears to require all applicants to now “book an appointment” via the Department’s website and physically attend in person to obtain the extension of stay. This also has to be accompanied by the cruising permit, proof of payment and contact details.
The ABM chief also complained that cruising permit and visitor stay applications are often not aligned, with a vessel sometimes allowed to enter The Bahamas for three months as an example but guests and crew only given permission for 30 days.
“I didn’t know that,” Mr Maury said of the Prime Minister’s foreshadowing of the fee’s imposition in the
Budget. “I wasn’t aware of it and none of the marina operators were either. We weren’t aware of it. Not a lot of us read all that stuff. How many Bahamians sit down and listen to the Budget? It’s still a pain and it’s anti-tourism as far as I’m concerned.”
Signalling that communications from the Government could have been better, Mr Maury said he only received notification from the Immigration Department just before he flew out to Monaco. He added that the seeming lack of notice had not only upset boating clients but left marinas unable to warn them of, and prepare them, for the change.
Acknowledging initial confusion over whether the $200 was “per person” or “per boat”, with Immigration officers in different islands giving different interpretations, he added that marinas were informing boats and
yachts that it is now the former. Instead of Immigration officers coming to extend visitor stays at the marina when boats arrive, their occupants now have to physically visit the Department.
“If you want to stay in The Bahamas longer as a visitor you have to now pay to do that,” Mr Maury said. “Before, we wanted the tourists to stay and extend their visit and spend money in the country. Now they are penalising you for doing that. If we’re trying to get the boats to stay longer and spend more money, it’s the exact opposite of what tourism is based on.
“I went to Monaco on September 25. We had a Bahamas booth at the show. One of the reasons we go to Monaco is because the weather is getting bad and they leave the Mediterranean and come to the Caribbean. We’re trying to get them to come to
The Bahamas because The Bahamas is closer.
“Of course, they put this [fee announcement] out. We got nailed. People were coming to our booth and they’re like: ‘You guys went up on charter fees, you went up on taxes and now this?’ I can tell you that, in Monaco, The Bahamas was off the menu. A lot of the Europeans were like: ‘I can’t come there any more. Prices are better in the Caribbean’,” the ABM president added.
“I had captains I’ve known for a very long time, and one particular yacht that used to come here all the time, helped out with Dorian and did a lot for this country, was like: ‘I’m never coming back there now. I just don’t understand it. Most of us come there and don’t mind spending money, but to be taxed for it and treated the way we are, we’re not going to do that’.”
Homeowners hit by Hurricane Helene face the grim task of rebuilding without flood insurance
By SALLY HO Associated Press
A WEEK after Hurri-
cane Helene overwhelmed the Southeastern U.S., homeowners hit the hardest are grappling with how they could possibly pay for
the flood damage from one of the deadliest storms to hit the mainland in recent history.
The Category 4 storm that first struck Florida's Gulf Coast on September 26 has dumped trillions of gallons of water across
several states, leaving a catastrophic trail of destruction that spans hundreds of miles inland. More than 200 people have died in what is now the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. since Katrina, according to
N O T I C E
IN THE ESTATE OF GEORGE BENJAMIN WATKINS late of Imperial Park in the Eastern District of the Island of New Providence, one of the Islands of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, deceased.
NOTICE is hereby given that all persons having any claim or demand against the above Estate are required to send the same duly certified in writing to the Undersigned on or before 4 November 2024, after which date the Administratrix will proceed to distribute the assets having regard only to the claims of which she shall then have had notice.
AND NOTICE is hereby also given that all persons indebted to the said Estate are requested to make full settlement on or before the date hereinbefore mentioned.
DELANEY PARTNERS
Attorneys for the Administratrix
Chambers
P. O. Box CB-13007
Lyford Cay House, 5th Floor
Western Road
Lyford Cay
New Providence, The Bahamas
Mr Maury said the concern was not the $200 fee’s implementation by itself but, rather, the lack of warning and consultation with industry and the compounding effect created by previous fee and tax hikes. “Everybody’s saying the same thing,” he added.
“The Bahamas is becoming prohibitive.
“Our fuel has gone up, our groceries are high, taxes are out of control and the whole process just to stay and spend more money in The Bahamas.. To go to the Family Islands and spend more money in the communities, you now have to come back to Nassau or go to the island administrator and get this stamped and that stamped.
“We’re making it so expensive that they don’t want to come here. It’s insane. It’s just insane. It’s the inconvenience of it. I know these guys say rich people can afford it, but I don’t understand that.
alone prepared for. Inland areas in parts of Georgia and Tennessee were also washed out.
statistics from the National Hurricane Center. Western North Carolina and the Asheville area were hit especially hard, with flooding that wiped out buildings, roads, utilities and land in a way that nobody expected, let
Nobody wants to throw their money away. It’s an excuse for grinding the business to a halt,” Mr Maury continued. “No rich person throws money away.
“There was definitely no warning [from Immigration]. They put it out and we were all shocked. All the marina operators talk, and we were like ‘when did this come out’ and ‘when did this take place’. We were all shocked. It was implemented the day before we found out about it.”
Another source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said some of the initial confusion and uncertainty around the $200 visitor visitor extension fee has now been resolved. However, they added: “There seems to be an unwritten, informal but active policy of some Immigration officers of limiting the length of stay when they first come in to 30 days. Cruising permits are for three months or a year.”
Julianne Johnson said she was coming upstairs from the basement to help her 5-year-old son pick out clothes that day when her husband began to yell that a giant oak was falling diagonally across the yard.
The tree mostly missed the house, but still crumpled part of a metal porch and damaged the roof.
The Oak Forest neighborhood in south Asheville lives up to its name, with trees towering over 1960s era ranch-style houses on large lots. But on Sept. 27, as Helene's remnants swept through western north Carolina, many of those trees came crashing down, sometimes landing on houses.
N O T I C E
IN THE ESTATE OF DR. TIMOTHY EDWARD AUGUSTUS BARRETT, SR. late of Tower Estates Drive, Sans Souci in the Eastern District of the Island of New Providence, one of the Islands of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, deceased.
NOTICE is hereby given that all persons having any claim or demand against the above Estate are required to send the same duly certified in writing to the Undersigned on or before 4 November 2024, after which date the Administratrix will proceed to distribute the assets having regard only to the claims of which she shall then have had notice.
AND NOTICE is hereby also given that all persons indebted to the said Estate are requested to make full settlement on or before the date hereinbefore mentioned.
DELANEY PARTNERS
Attorneys for the Administratrix
Chambers
P. O. Box CB-13007
Lyford Cay House, 5th Floor
Western Road
Lyford Cay
New Providence, The Bahamas
Former BPL director wins $600k termination payout
reasons for it, were “unfair, unreasonable, unlawfully discriminatory and unconstitutional” by finding “there is no compelling evidence” that the Davis administration’s BPL Board permitted the Government to implement a “discriminatory practice” of removing senior management executives perceived to be FNM supporters.
Mr Rollins, reacting to the verdict, told this newspaper: “Justice prevailed. The Board abrogated its fiduciary responsibilities to the shareholders [the Government and people of The Bahamas], and chose to pursue a case against me, trying to coerce me into accepting a far lower payment for separating from the company.
“I took them to court and justice prevailed. The Board was fully aware of what they were doing when they did it.” The BPL Board decided to terminate Mr Rollins at its first meeting despite one director, Cheryl Simms, an executive with the Kikivarakis & Co accounting firm, voicing misgivings about the consequences of doing so given the absence of a termination ‘without cause’ clause in his contract.
Mr Rollins was appointed as BPL’s deputy chairman on July 1, 2017, following the Minnis administration’s election victory that year. He resigned from the Board on August 14, 2018, butprior to that - had signed a
three-year employment contract on July 20 of that year to become BPL’s executive director with responsibility for overseeing “large technical projects”.
Sir Ian, in his verdict, noted that “in reality” BPL was ‘informed’ of Mr Rollins’ appointment by Mr Bannister, then-deputy prime minister and minister of works with responsibility for BPL, at a July 4, 2018, Board meeting. The job description for the post was sent to BPL on July 13, 2018, by the acting permanent secretary at the Ministry of Works.
Besides the $180,000 base salary, the three-year contract gave Mr Rollins an annual gratuity equal to 15 percent of salary; a BPL vehicle; and medical insurance. He was required to give three months’ notice if he intended to resign, but the contract only permitted BPL’s Board to terminate him “for cause” and provide the reasons for doing so to the minister.
Mr Rollins’ contract was renewed for a second three-year term beginning on July 1, 2021, which was some two-and-a-half months before the September general election. “Bannister had requested that Rollins’ contract be renewed for three years,” Sir Ian wrote in his verdict.
The contract’s terms and conditions were the same as the first version, although the Chief Justice wrote: “It had been proposed by Bannister that, on the renewal of
BAHAMAS POWER & LIGHT (BL) HEADQUARTERS
Rollins’ contract, his annual remuneration ought to be increased from $180,000 to $189,000 and that he should receive annual increments of 4 percent per annum over the life of the contract, but these increases were rejected by BPL’s Board.”
The Davis administration’s election to office resulted in the appointment of a new BPL Board chaired by Mr Rolle, a realtor and the Exuma Chamber of Commerce’s president. Mr Rollins testified that he only became aware his job was in danger when he went to see Mr Rolle in December 2021 over the renewal of Wartsila’s expiring contract to operate/maintain BPL’s Station A generation plant at Clifton Pier.
“During the course of that conversation, chairman Rolle informed me that ‘certain people in Cabinet were asking for your head and CEO Heastie’s head because, you know, you are Desmond’s boy’,” he alleged.
“Mr Rolle went on to say to me: ‘I need you to let me know what you are willing to accept because if it goes to court it will take a long time to resolve. Think about it and get back to me because we are not prepared to pay the balance of your contract out’. I was taken aback by this last comment, and saddened, given the effort and industry that I had put into BPL these past several years.”
Mr Rollins described Wartsila’s contract, which was not renewed, as “essential to BPL at the time because Wartsila were the only ones who could operate Station A, and Station A provided 130 mega watts (MW) of power, which is on some days three-quarters of the power needed to run New Providence’.
Mr Rolle, though, vehemently denied saying what was asserted by Mr Rollins. Sir Ian wrote on his verdict: “Rollins said under crossexamination that, after the alleged meeting with chairman Rolle he went back to his office, just said ‘wow’ and continued working.
“Rollins said he continued to work at BPL in good faith, advancing the projects that he was overseeing, in the knowledge that the new Board of BPL was, at some unknown time, going to terminate his contract prematurely, refuse to pay out the balance and protract any legal challenge based on ‘some obscure political vendetta’.
“Rollins said that this state of affairs was ‘intolerable’ for him and that he ‘vacillated between depression and anxiety’. Rollins also said that chairman Rolle’s threat that, unless he agreed to accept less than the balance of his contract, he would have to wait a long time to have his dispute resolved through the courts ‘resonated in his mind’.”
BPL’s new Board, at its first meeting on Thursday, January 20, 2022, decided to terminate Mr Rollins’ contract with effect from the following day by providing him with three months’ pay in lieu of notice. He was duly summoned to a meeting with Daniel Ferguson, BPL’s deputy chairman, who presented him with a $67,077 cheque and termination letter that he refused to accept or sign.
Mr Rollins duly launched a Supreme Court claim for breach of contract, seeking payment of the remaining $435,000 salary due to him on the balance of his second three-year deal plus $81,000 to cover the three annual gratuities; vehicle allowance worth $17,400; some $20,277 in accrued vacation; and $46,350 to cover replacement medical insurance.
He also claimed for unfair and unconstitutional dismissal on the basis of Mr Rolle’s purported comments that the Cabinet wanted to “terminate him because of his perceived affiliation to Desmond Bannister, a member of the former FNM Cabinet”.
Mr Rollins, in his claim, alleged: “The Board of BPL
allowed the Government to dictate the implementation of a discriminatory practice of removing key management employees who were affiliated with the FNM... The Board of BPL discriminated against Mr Rollins solely on the basis of his perceived political affiliation and/or opinion by dismissing him..
“Mr Rollins was subjected to humiliation and degradation merely because of his perceived political affiliation with the FNM and without being afforded an opportunity to be heard on the continuity of his contract.”
BPL, in its defence, denied that Mr Rollins was employed on a fixed-term contract and instead argued that he was a permanent employee who could be dismissed with three months’ notice under the Employment Act’s terms.
The state-owned utility also rejected the assertion that he was dismissed for political reasons, and denied that it had subjected Mr Rollins to discriminatory or humiliating treatment, instead asserting that the dismissal was driven by the need to cut costs and eliminate the duplication of roles between himself and Mr Heastie.
And, arguing that Mr Rollins had been paid “above industry compensation”, BPL alleged that his hiring “was part of the controversy that led to the termination or resignation of a previous Board which was then chaired by Darnell Osborne, and it was therefore accepted that his appointment may have been made in questionable circumstances”.
Mr Rolle, during his trial testimony, said he “struggled to understand why BPL in essence required two chief executives at an annual cost of $500,000” as part of the rationale for Mr Rollins’ termination. And he “strenuously denied” telling the former executive director “that certain members of the Cabinet were calling for his and CEO Heastie’s termination”. After analysing all the evidence, Sir Ian found both Mr Rollins’ contracts “were genuine fixed-term contracts”. As a result, he rejected BPL’s argument that it was “the spirit and intent” of the two sides that Mr Rollins’ employment could be terminated by three months’ notice. And, in the absence of any evidence to show he would have been “terminated for cause”, the Chief Justice found Mr Rollins was entitled to all the compensation he was seeking and duly awarded him a total $592,952 plus interest at 2 percent to run from his January 21, 2022, termination. Interest amounts to $11,859 per annum, and Sir Ian said he was awarding that sum because BPL had
knowingly failed to provide full compensation despite taking legal advice and the warning from Ms Simms. And, in contrast, it had paid the full contractual sum due to the previous BPL executive director, Deepak Bhatnagar, when he was terminated.
However, Sir Ian rejected the unfair dismissal claim, as he “placed greater weight on the inherent improbability that an experienced businessman would tell a senior executive what it is alleged was said” in the case of Mr Rolle’s comments to Mr Rollins.
Also finding an absence of “wider evidential support” to show the termination was politically motivated, the Chief Justice concluded: “There is no compelling evidence that the Board of BPL allowed the Government to dictate the implementation of a discriminatory practice of removing key management employees who were affiliated with the FNM, which is a very serious allegation.
“The evidence adduced by Rollins does not bear out that there was a ‘witch hunt’ at BPL for FNM-appointed executive management (whomever that set of people may consist of). There is, in the same way, no compelling evidence that the Board failed to act independently in the exercise of their fiduciary duties to BPL and failed to consider whether Rollins’ termination was in the best interests of BPL.
“There is also no compelling evidence that Rollins was subjected to humiliation or degradation because of his perceived political affiliation with the FNM. Rollins’ evidence of humiliation and degradation was gravely undermined during cross-examination.”
However, Sir Ian hinted that he would have found Mr Rollins’ dismissal to be unfair if his claim had been broadened beyond political factors.
“Rollins was a senior employee who had been in BPL’s service for several years with no record of misconduct, relatively few years of his working life left to anticipate,” he added.
“Yet no advance notice of BPL’s intention to make him redundant was given to him, BPL knowingly failed to pay out Rollins’ contract - treating him differently from Bhatnagar - where no justification was provided for doing so, and failed to consult the minister responsible for labour on Rollins’ redundancy as required by the Employment Act.”
Ferron Bethell KC, who was a fellow BPL Board member with Mr Rollins under the Minnis administration, represented the former executive director. Raynard Rigby KC led BPL’s defence.
‘Trespasser’ ordered to vacate Mosko Group beach club land
and changing rooms, lockers and showers.
Jimmy Mosko declined to comment when contacted by Tribune Business and referred this newspaper to Toby Hayes, who also declined to speak on the grounds that he did not want to prejudice the project’s upcoming Town Planning Committee hearing on October 21.
“A lot of thought and a lot of effort has gone into it from a lot of different parties to come up with something,” he said. Given the project’s proximity to Sea Beach Estates, several sources have suggested there will likely be opposition at the Town Planning meeting due to concerns over increased traffic volumes and congestion.
Ahead of the Town Planning hearing and public consultation, the Mosko Group of Companies and Vakis Ltd have been busy evicting an alleges trespasser - a daiquiri shack
operator - from the Rock Point property and development site. Vakis Ltd has obtained an August 2, 2024, ruling from Justice Carla Card-Stubbs requiring Andrew Murray, operator of ‘Daq Shack’ or ‘Tropical Daiquiri’, to “pull down or remove” his structure within three weeks plus remove all tables, benches and other belongings from the site within the same timeframe. An injunction was also issued to prevent Mr Murray from “trespassing” on the land.
However, photos supplied to Tribune Business show the daiquiri shack remained on the property as of late last week despite the Supreme Court ruling and Order. Mr Hayes conceded that Vakis Ltd might have to remove the structure itself, and revealed that Mr Murray had twice rejected its offer for him to lease the property for just $1.
“It won’t hold up any Rock Point plans,” he added of ‘Daq Shack’s’
N O T I C E
Murphy Semai IV Ltd.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows:
(a) Murphy Semai IV Ltd. is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act, 2000.
(b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 2 October, 2024 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General.
(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is David Butler.
Dated the 3rd day of October, 2024.
H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD.
Registered Agent for the above-named Company
continued presence. “We have twice offered Andrew Murray to lease that property for $1 a year. He refused that twice and told us where to go. We had no choice. I don’t think he will remove it, and it might be up to us to do that.”
Mr Hayes said the principals of the Taco Stand, shown in the photo next to the daiquiri shack, both have a Business Licence and all necessary permits and are leasing their spot on the same terms as those offered to Mr Murray.
“We just intend to defend our interest in the land, and our within our rights to do so. We had to spend a lot of money on legal fees to resolve that when all he had to do was sign the lease. He was offered a lease at $1 a year and refused,” Mr Hayes reiterated.
Justice Card-Stubbs, in her ruling, noted: “The evidence of Toby Hayes, employed by a company that manages certain properties owned by the claimant [Vakis Ltd], is that
during one of his site visits ‘in or around March 2019’, he noticed ‘a makeshift wooden building known at the time as ‘Daq Shack’ where daiquiris were being prepared and sold.
“There was a generator connected to the beverage stand that produced electricity for that business. Also, there were wooden tables and benches nearby for customers to use. Mr. Hayes’ evidence is that he ‘made enquiries to ascertain who the owner was and was told that the proprietor was the defendant’ [Andrew Murray].
“Mr Hayes evidence is that, following this discovery, the attorneys for the claimant’s attorneys wrote to the defendant informing him that he was encroaching on the claimant’s land. The letter also invited the defendant to acknowledge the claimant’s ownership of the land by signing the letter. The claimant received no such acknowledgment from
N O T I C E
MURPHY SOUTH BARITO LTD.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows:
(a) MURPHY SOUTH BARITO LTD. is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act, 2000.
(b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 2 October, 2024 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General.
(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is David Butler.
Dated the 3rd day of October, 2024.
H & J CORPORATE SERVICES LTD.
Registered Agent for the above-named Company
the defendant,” the judge added. “On another site visit ‘one month later’, Mr Hayes observed that the defendant continued to operate the beverage stand on the claimant’s land.
The claimant’s attorneys issued a second letter to the defendant and then a third letter. There was no response from the defendant to the letters from the attorneys for the claimant.
“Mr Hayes’ evidence is that he last visited the
property on May 20, 2024, and that the structure was still present. He describes the shack as a ‘permanent structure made of timber and wood’. It operated with an electronic device. On this issue, I am satisfied that the claimant gave no consent to the defendant to operate the daiquiri stand known as Tropical Daiquiri on its land. The Defendant operated same without permission and is a trespasser.”
EXUMA RESORT NEIGHBOURS AT ODDS ON PROJECT’S PLANS
FROM PAGE B3
water activities such as kayaking and snorkelling would make his resort not “economically viable”.
“There’s no possible way to dredge that area and not have an effect on the robust breeze, seagrass, the whole thing,” explained Mr Coughlin. “In terms of our resort, you’re going to bring industrial barges in front of us, making us not an economically viable place to go.
“Those waters are clear, pristine and full life right now and the notion that that would be destroyed… once you destroy it, it doesn’t come back. The world class part of Exuma is not the buildings and the resorts and the health clubs, it’s the environment. Ask anybody who comes here. And so, I just encourage these guys to think harder about their plan and how they not impact their neighbours.”
Speaking to Tribune Business, Mr MacLean said the two projects are not “comparable” and he will respond to the concerns raised by Mr Coughlin during the consultation process. “I don’t have anything against Turtlegrass,” said Mr MacLean.
“I don’t believe that it’s a comparable project. We’re doing something really different. We’re doing something unique for the Exumas. We’re doing something that is going to have an impact on the community in the Exumas.
“It’s our neighbour, and we’re being compliant with everything that DEPP has required, and we’re going to continue to be compliant.
And any concern that they have, they can address it to DEPP. [They had] a lot of questions, and those are going to be answered. We just want to make sure that we are compliant, and that we have a great project which is feasible and in line with all the regulations here in The Bahamas.” Mr MacLean said Rosewood Exuma will create hundreds of employment opportunities, including 250 jobs during the construction phase and over 150 permanent jobs, and partner with local programmes to ensure the project has a long-lasting positive effect. He said once all approvals have been given site preparation can begin, with a view to open June 2028. “As soon as we finish these approvals, we’re ready to start. Hopefully, in the first quarter of next year. The hotel has a targeted opening day of June 2028,” said Mr MacLean.
“We are committed for the long-term because we believe in Exuma. As good community partners, we believe that public consultation is a key part of the open and transparent process of getting feedback from the community.
“Yntegra and the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection will reply to the questions and concerns submitted by the public. Our vision is to unlock the unrealised investment and economic potential of the Exumas. We want to preserve the beauty of the Exumas and ensure a legacy of responsible and conscious development for future generations to enjoy.”
In Voluntary Liquidation
Notice is hereby given that in accordance with Section 138(4) of the International Business Companies Act. 2000, KOORB HOLDINGS S.A. is in dissolution as of October 1. 2024
International Liquidator Services Ltd. situated at 3rd Floor Whitfield Tower, 4792 Coney Drive, Belize City, Belize is the Liquidator.
Solar power companies are growing fast in Africa, where 600 million still lack electricity
By KEMO CHAM and JESSICA DONATI Associated Press
COMPANIES that bring solar power to some of the poorest homes in Central and West Africa are said to be among the fastest growing on a continent whose governments have long struggled to address some of the world's worst infrastructure and the complications of climate change.
The often African-owned companies operate in areas where the vast majority of people live disconnected from the electricity grid, and offer products ranging from solar-powered lamps that allow children to study at night to elaborate home systems that power kitchen appliances and plasma televisions. Prices range from less than $20 for a solarpowered lamp to thousands of dollars for home appliances and entertainment systems.
Central and West Africa have some of the world's lowest electrification rates.
In West Africa, where 220 million people live without power, this is as low as 8%, according to the World Bank. Many rely on expensive kerosene and other fuels that fill homes and businesses with fumes and risk causing fires.
At the last United Nations climate summit, the world agreed on the goal of tripling the capacity for renewable power generation by 2050. While the African continent is responsible for hardly any carbon emissions relative to its size, solar has become one relatively cost-effective way to provide electricity.
The International Energy Agency, in a report earlier this year, said small and medium-sized solar companies are making rapid progress reaching homes but more needs to be invested to reach all African homes and businesses by 2030.
About 600 million Africans lack access to electricity, it said, out of a population of more than 1.3 billion. Among the companies that made the Financial Times' annual ranking of Africa's fastest growing companies of 2023 was Easy Solar, a locally owned firm that brings solar power to homes and businesses in Sierra Leone and Liberia. The ranking went by compound annual growth rate in revenue.
Co-founder Nthabiseng Mosia grew up in Ghana with frequent power cuts.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that JEAN-CLAUDE JEANLOUIS of #28 Balfour Avenue, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas and that any person who knows any reason whyregistration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 30th day of September, 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that RONALD SAMUEL of #4 Infant View Road, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 30th day of September, 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that Ashley AmAndA FrAncis of Tasmine Circle, Freeport, Grand Bahama, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 7th day of October, 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
She became interested in solving energy problems in Africa while at graduate school in the United States. Together with a U.S. classmate, she launched the company in Sierra Leone with electrification rates among the lowest in West Africa.
"There wasn't really anybody doing solar at scale. And so we thought it was a good opportunity," Mosia said in an interview.
Since launching in 2016, Easy Solar has brought
solar power to over a million people in Sierra Leone and Liberia, which have a combined population of more than 14 million.
The company's network includes agents and shops in all of Sierra Leone's 16 districts and seven of nine counties in Liberia.
Many communities have been connected to a stable source of power for the first time. "We really want to go to the last mile deep into the rural areas," Mosia said.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that EddiE TElcy of Drake avenue #86, Freeport, Grand Bahama, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 7th day of October, 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
The company began with a pilot project in Songo, a community on the outskirts of Sierra Leone's capital Freetown. Uptake was slow at first, Mosia said. Villagers worried about the cost of solar-powered appliances, but once they began to see light in their neighbors' homes at night, more signed on.
"We have long forgotten about kerosene," said Haroun Patrick Samai, a Songo resident and land surveyor. "Before Easy
Solar we lived in constant danger of a fire outbreak from the use of candles and kerosene."
Altech, a solar power company based in Congo, also ranked as one of Africa's fastest growing companies.
Fewer than 20% of the population in Congo has access to electricity, according to the World Bank.
Co-founders Washikala Malango and Iongwa Mashangao fled conflict in Congo's South Kivu province as children and grew up in Tanzania. They decided to launch the company in 2013 to help solve the power problems they had experienced growing up in a refugee camp, relying on kerosene for power and competing with family members for light to study at night.
Altech now operates in 23 out of 26 provinces in Congo, and the company expects to reach the remaining ones by the end of the year. Its founders say they have sold over 1 million products in Congo in a range of solar-powered solutions for homes and businesses, including lighting, appliances, home systems and generators.
"For the majority of our customers, this is the first time they are connected to a power source," Malango said.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that JACKSON SIMILIEN of Podoleo Street, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas and that any person who knows any reason whyregistration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 30th day of September, 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
THIS photo released by Easy Solar shows a large solar panels installation on a rooftop of an office building in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Tuesday Aug. 13, 2024.
Photo:Easy Solar/AP
Private pilot Bahamas alert ‘of grave concern’
because they have to stop here but they are not happy about it.”
Ms McIntosh, too, challenged the fee structure.
“We have to charge the fees; it’s got to be done, but maybe it was the way it was presented and maybe the commercial airlines should pay a lot more than the private charters coming in
with two or four people. It doesn’t seem fair,” she said. The fee increases, unveiled as part of the Customs Management (Amendment) Regulations 2024, represent a threefold and six-fold increase, respectively, on the previous Customs fee structure for private aviation which was $50 “inbound” and zero “outbound”.
Now, with the changes, commercial jets will have to pay a $50 “inbound” and $50 “outbound” fee for a total of $100. However, a private plane with four seats or less “including all seats in the cabin” is now faced with paying $75 each way for a total of $150. That is slightly more than the $100 fee for a commercial jet, but private aircraft
Top US trade official sees progress in helping workers. Voters will decide if her approach continues
By JOSH BOAK Associated Press
AS the U.S. trade representative, Katherine Tai is legally required to avoid discussing the presidential election. But her ideas about fair trade are on the ballot in November.
Voters are essentially being asked to decide whether it is best to work with the rest of the world or threaten it. Do they favor pursuing worker protections in trade talks, as Tai has done on behalf of the Biden-Harris administration? Or should the United States jack up taxes on almost everything it imports as Donald Trump has pledged to do?
After nearly four years in her job, Tai feels she is making progress on getting
the U.S. and its trade partners to focus more on workers' rights. Decades of trade deals often prioritized keeping costs low by finding cheap labor that could, in some cases, be exploited.
"You can't do trade policy by yourself," Tai said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I am confident that the path that we are on is the right path to be on. I think the only question is how much progress we are able to make in these next years."
It is an approach that has drawn criticism from business leaders, economists and Republicans who say that the U.S. has not made enough progress on new trade partnerships and countering China's rise.
"There have been no trade deals, no talks to
expand free trade agreements," Rep. Carol Miller, R-W.Va., said in an April congressional hearing with Tai. "Compared to China's ambitious agenda, the United States is falling behind in every region in the world."
Trump says that broad tariffs of at least 20% on all imports -– and possibly even higher on some products from China and Mexico -– would bring back American factory jobs. Most economists say they would hurt economic growth and raise inflation, though the former president has dismissed those concerns.
"If you're a foreign country and you don't make your product here, then you will have to pay a tariff, a fairly substantial one, which
with more than four seats “including all seats in the cabin” now face having to pay $150 “inbound” and “outbound” fees to Customs for a total $300. So-called “recreational” flights will only pay $150 “inbound”, but it is unclear what this definition means and how it will be applied.
Mr Fountain said the Promotion Board was
attempting to counter the fall-out with its year-round ‘Fly Almost Free’ initiative, which gives private pilots a $300 credit or rebate if they stay for four consecutive nights in a member hotel. And, for those engaged in “island hopping”, it will reimburse $150 at each stop they make. Ms McIntosh, meanwhile, added: “I’m going to make
will go into our treasury, will reduce taxes," Trump, the Republican presidential nominee this year, said at a recent rally in Erie, Pennsylvania.
An Ivy League background and a blue-collar perspective
Tai has degrees from Yale University and Harvard Law School, but strives for a blue-collar perspective on trade. She said that she has injected once-excluded
Homeowners hit by Hurricane Helene face the grim task of rebuilding without flood insurance
By SALLY HO Associated Press
A WEEK after Hurri-
cane Helene overwhelmed the Southeastern U.S., homeowners hit the hardest are grappling with how they could possibly pay for the flood damage from one of the deadliest storms to hit the mainland in recent history.
The Category 4 storm that first struck Florida's Gulf Coast on September 26 has dumped trillions of gallons of water across several states, leaving a catastrophic trail of destruction that spans hundreds of miles inland. More than 200 people have died in what is now the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland U.S. since Katrina, according to statistics from the National Hurricane Center.
Western North Carolina and the Asheville area were hit especially hard, with flooding that wiped out buildings, roads, utilities and land in a way that
nobody expected, let alone prepared for. Inland areas in parts of Georgia and Tennessee were also washed out.
The Oak Forest neighborhood in south Asheville lives up to its name, with trees towering over 1960s era ranch-style houses on large lots. But on Sept. 27, as Helene's remnants swept through western north Carolina, many of those trees came crashing down, sometimes landing on houses.
Julianne Johnson said she was coming upstairs from the basement to help her 5-year-old son pick out clothes that day when her husband began to yell that a giant oak was falling diagonally across the yard.
The tree mostly missed the house, but still crumpled part of a metal porch and damaged the roof. Then, Johnson said, her basement flooded. On Friday, there was a blue tarp being held on the roof with a brick.
Sodden carpet that the family torn out lay on the
side of the house, waiting to go to the landfill. With no cell phone service or internet access, Johnson said she couldn't file a home insurance claim until four days after the storm.
"It took me a while to make that call," she said. "I don't have an adjuster yet."
Roof and tree damage are likely to be covered by the average home insurance policy. But Johnson, like many homeowners, doesn't have flood insurance and she's not certain how she'll pay for that part of the damage.
Those recovering from the storm may be surprised to learn flood damage is a completely separate thing. Insurance professionals and experts have long warned that home insurance typically does not cover flood damage to the home, even as they espouse that flooding can happen anywhere that rains. That's because flooding isn't just sea water seeping into the land – it's also water from banks, as
an extra special effort with my private pilots, give them the fourth night free and offer food and drink discounts. The Bluff House is going to encourage them to come over. I hate to let the Government off the hook but we’re going to have to step up; each of the properties that private pilots come to. We have to make them feel special.”
well as mudflow and torrential rains.
But most private insurance companies don't carry flood insurance, leaving the National Flood Insurance Program run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as the primary provider for that coverage for residential homes. Congress created the federal flood insurance program more than 50 years ago when many private insurers stopped offering policies in high-risk areas.
North Carolina has 129,933 such policies in
labor union voices into the trade process.
The Biden-Harris administration has not rejected tariffs. It kept the ones on China from Trump's presidency. It has imposed a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles, even though there is not much of a U.S. market for these vehicles that can cost, without tariffs, as little as $12,000. Tai sees that as a way to shield an emerging
force, according to FEMA's latest data, though most of that protection will likely be concentrated on the coast rather than in the Blue Ridge Mountains area where Helene caused the most damage. Florida, in comparison, has about 1.7 million flood policies in place statewide.
Charlotte Hicks, a flood insurance expert in North Carolina who has led flood risk training and educational outreach for the state's Department of Insurance, said the reality is that many Helene survivors will never be made whole. Without flood insurance, some people may be able to rebuild with the help of charities but most
industry against subsidized and unfair competition.
But the administration also is looking to bolster U.S. workers in the face of competition from China through other industrial policies, such as funding for computer chip factories and tax breaks for technology in renewable energy sources.
The reality, according to some economists, is that domestic factories did not simply lose jobs to China. There were productivity gains that meant some manufacturers needed fewer employers and there was a broader shift as more workers moved away from manufacturing and into the services sector. Those factors often get less emphasis from Tai, said Mary Lovely, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
others will be left to fend for themselves.
"There will absolutely be people who will be financially devasted by this event," Hicks said. "It's heartbreaking."
Some may go into foreclosure or bankruptcy. Entire neighborhoods will likely never be rebuilt. There's been water damage across the board, Hicks said, and for some, mudslides have even taken the land upon which their house once stood.
Meanwhile, Helene is turning out to be a fairly manageable disaster for the private home insurance market because those plans generally only serve to cover wind damage from hurricanes.
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai speaks during a media briefing at the State Department, Sept. 29, 2023, in Washington. Photo:Mark Schiefelbein/AP
SUPREME COURT LEAVES IN PLACE TWO BIDEN ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS
By LINDSAY WHITEHURST and MATTHEW DALY Associated Press
THE Supreme Court left in place Friday two Biden administration environmental regulations aimed at reducing industry emissions of planet-warming methane and toxic mercury.
The justices did not detail their reasoning in the orders, which came after a flurry of emergency applications to block the rules from industry groups and Republican-leaning states. There were no noted dissents.
The high court is still considering challenges to a third Environmental Protection Agency rule aimed at curbing planet-warming pollution from coal-fired power plants.
The regulations are part of a broader effort by the Biden administration aimed at curbing climate change that includes financial incentives to buy electric vehicles and upgrade infrastructure, and rules tightening tailpipe pollution standards for cars and trucks.
The industry groups and states had argued the EPA overstepped its authority and set unattainable standards with the new regulations. The EPA, though, said the rules are squarely
within its legal responsibilities and would protect the public. An EPA spokesperson said Friday the agency is pleased that the Supreme Court denied applications to stay the final methane and mercury rules. EPA believes the rule tightening methane emissions from oil and gas drilling will deliver major climate and health benefits for all Americans, while the mercury rule will limit hazardous pollution from coal-fired power plants, spokesperson Remmington Belford said.
The methane rule will build on innovative technologies and solutions that many oil- and gas-producing states and companies are already using or have committed to use, while the mercury and air toxics rule "will ensure that the nation's coal-fired power plants meet up-to-date standards for hazardous air pollutants," Belford said.
Both rules are firmly grounded in the EPA's authority under the Clean Air Act, he said.
The Supreme Court has shot down other environmental regulations in recent years, including a landmark decision that limited the EPA's authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants in 2022, and another that halted the
agency's air-pollution-fighting "good neighbor" rule.
The methane rule puts new requirements on the oil and gas industry, which is the largest emitter of the
gas that's a key contributor to climate change. A lower court previously refused to halt the regulation.
Methane is the main component in natural gas
and is far more potent than carbon dioxide in the short term. Sharp cuts in methane emissions are a global priority — including the United States — to slow the
rate of climate change. The methane rule targets emissions from existing oil and gas wells nationwide, rather than focusing only on new wells.
Private pilot Bahamas alert ‘of grave concern’
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor
FAMILY Island resorts yesterday said the travel alert issued against The Bahamas by the world’s largest private pilot body “is of grave concern” as they pledged to do everything possible to retain business.
Kerry Fountain, the Bahama Out Island Promotion Board’s executive director, told Tribune Business that “we really need to get this right in a timely manner so we can can capture the business we have the possibility of losing” after the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) warned its 300,000-plus members about the “egregious” fee increases they face when landing in this nation.
Noting that AOPA and others had in July discussed the increased fees, and their likely negative impact on The Bahamas’ lucrative private aviation market, with Customs officials at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, one of the world’s largest fly-in events, he voiced disappointment that there had seemingly been no “follow-up” by this nation to address the industry’s fee concerns.
Both Mr Fountain and Molly McIntosh, principal of Green Turtle Cay’s Bluff House Beach Resort and Marina, told this newspaper they plan to offer a series of discounts and financial incentives to make visiting private pilots “feel special” and offset the impact from the increased Customs fees structure implemented from July 1 with the 20242025 Budget.
While “I don’t think it’s going to put us out of business”, Ms McIntosh said the fee backlash among visiting private pilots will have “a degree” of impact for her resort and other Family Island hotels that rely on this visitor segment far more than their New Providence counterparts.
Describing general aviation clients as “the best people”, she recalled how one of the specialists she recently encountered while in the US for medical treatment informed her how - as a private pilot - he and other fliers in his group will this year divert to Key West rather than make their regular annual trip to The Bahamas because of the fee increase.
Dr Kenneth Romer, the director of aviation and Ministry of Tourism’s deputy director-general, did not respond to Tribune Business messages and calls before press time seeking comment on how the Government plans to respond to the AOPA warning and safeguard a market responsible for generating one out of every six of this country’s stopover visitors in 2023.
However, Mr Fountain told Tribune Business of AOPA’s move: “It is of grave concern, let me say that. I don’t have the facts and figures at my finger tips, but private pilots and boaters account for a significant amount of business for the Family Islands. Suffice it to say it’s of grave concern.
“It’s also concerning that AOPA reached out, and I understand they had meetings with the Customs Department back in July, so I can only assume based on its release that there was nobody concerned to follow up in a timely manner between AOPA and Customs. That’s disheartening to me.” AOPA, in unveiling its Bahamas travel alert on
Wednesday, signalled it had been forced into this move because of “little to no response from the Bahamian government”, as well as Prime Minister Philip Davis KC, to its pleas to adjust hikes that represent a three-fold and six-fold increase, respectively, on the previous Customs fee structure which was $50 “inbound” and zero “outbound”.
Mr Fountain, meanwhile, indicated that The Bahamas has relatively little time in which to address AOPA’s concerns and persuade it to withdraw its travel advisory given that one of the two peak private aviation seasons is just months away with the Christmas and holiday season.
Likening the annual private aviation business cycle to a camel with two humps, he added that the other
peak traditionally occurs in March and April as pilots ramp up for the summer.
“We really need to get this right in a timely manner so we can capture the business we have the possibility of losing,” Mr Fountain told Tribune Business.
While private pilots can largely afford the fee increases, the Promotion Board chief explained that the concerns instead involve how The Bahamas blindsided them over the latest hikes by giving no advance warning or consultation. And there was a feeling they are being exploited and taken advantage of, and targeted for increased taxes and fees, merely because The Bahamas sees them as being wealthy.
Mr Fountain and several Bahamas Flying Ambassadors have warned that, based on these principles and with the ability to fly anywhere, private pilots will switch to other Florida and Caribbean destinations even if fuel costs are higher.
“That’s all AOPA is asking: Don’t just dump it on us,” Mr Fountain added. This was echoed by Ms McIntosh, who said such sentiments were forcefully voiced to her by the anesthesiologist she met when in the US for medical treatment.
“He told me he was a private pilot, and they feel really disrespected and unappreciated,” the Bluff House Beach Resort and Marina principal revealed. “While they love The Bahamas and its people, they feel disadvantaged and can go where they want.”
Revealing that the doctor is part of a larger pilot group, she added: “He said they’re not going to go to The Bahamas this year because of the fee increase. They’re going to Key West. It’s a small world.” Ms McIntosh said that while the combined impact from the fee increase and AOPA’s warning is unlikely to be catastrophic “it’s definitely going to have an impact.
“It’s not going to be devastating,” she added, “but to me it’s the bad press, the bad feeling. Private pilots are the best people. Not only do they spend money in the destination but they fly in groups. We get a group from Kentucky every year in January and February, and have one group coming in in November.
“I think they feel it was thrust upon them with no talk, no consultation. All of a sudden, here it is. I think that’s part of the problem. It will impact us to a degree. We get a lot of private pilots coming over and maybe some of them will
consider somewhere else not as expensive. “Everything has gone up; the cost of fuel, the cost of food, the cost of transportation. Everything they do has gone up as in the US. It’s [the AOPA advisory] going to gave an effect although it’s not going to put us out of business.”
Joel Friese, principal at Stella Maris in Long Island, said November and December private aviation traffic will prove a better indicator of the fall-out from the fee increases. While there has been no drop-off yet, he added that pilots and customers have been voicing complaints over what are viewed as “excessive” and inequitable increases.
In particular, Mr Friese noted that a small private plane is now paying more in Customs fees than a commercial jet with several hundred passengers. And a small single engine aircraft is paying the same as a private jet valued at several million dollars, as he added: “That, in my opinion, needs to be addressed.”
“For us personally, our charter business, it doesn’t impact us greatly as all the flights we do are domestic flights. We don’t have those fees,” Mr Friese said. “However, as the fixed base operator (FBO) at Stella Maris for private planes, it is causing concern.
“We have had several pilots voice their concerns, but I haven’t really seen people say they are not coming because of that. They’re definitely not happy about it, but I think that in the overall scheme of things it’s not that people will decide not to come because of that.
“I definitely think it is a bit excessive that fee hike. I don’t want to make light of it. People are definitely saying negative things about it, saying it’s excessive.” Mr Friese said private aviation business volumes have yet to be impacted, but added: “It’s still very early days. It’s a very slow period here with very little traffic, but when things get busy in November and December we’ll start to see if this impacts business.
“We do know with some groups that come, particularly groups starting in November, have so far indicated they are coming. We won’t know until after they come whether the numbers will be similar or if there will be a reduction in participation,” he added. “It’s a wait and see.
“We do have a number of planes that stop here for refuelling and go on into the Caribbean. It’s an increased fee for them as well. They have no choice
KERRY FOUNTAIN