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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2023
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Opposition raises alarm over skyrocketing Q1 deficit By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE Opposition’s finance spokesman yesterday warned against an “exploded” deficit for Q1 and chided the government on holding back on its August and September fiscal report for so long. Kwasi Thompson, former minister of state for finance under the Minnis administration, said in a statement that the “Opposition is alarmed to read in the extremely late September budget report that the first quarter budget deficit of $58m for fiscal year 2023/2024 is almost 300 percent higher than the $20m deficit for the corresponding period last fiscal year. Instead of seeing a rapidly shrinking deficit in line with the government’s broader fiscal plan, we see a deficit for the first quarter that has exploded year-on-year. The deficit seems to be well in excess of what should have been the target for the first quarter of the year. “This is no doubt why both the credit rating agency, Standard & Poors, and the IMF are projecting that this Davis administration will
t 0QQPTJUJPO EFNBOET HPW U FYQMBOBUJPO BT mTDBM SFTQPOTJCJMJUZ DPNFT VOEFS TDSVUJOZ t 5IPNQTPO DSJUJDJ[FT EFMBZFE SFMFBTF PG mTDBM SFQPSUT t 6SHFT JNNFEJBUF BDUJPO UP BEESFTT TPBSJOH EFmDJU bust its budget deficit targets by a huge margin. It also explains why in our view the government has deliberately held back the publication of these reports for months and months and tried to slide them out on a Friday evening before an extended Christmas holiday break. They were hoping no doubt that the Bahamian people would be distracted by the
holiday festivities and would miss this bit of troubling fiscal news that does not fit into the narratives being generated by KWASI THOMPSON the PLP spin factory.” The government reported a $47m increase in total spending resulting in a near-tripling of the government’s first quarter fiscal deficit yearover-year and also disclosed that the deficit for the three months to end-September 2023 hit $58m as compared to just $20.5m during the same period in the prior fiscal year. Mr Thompson added: “Based on the September 2023 report, this year on year spike in the quarterly deficit was fueled by a $47m jump (percent) in spending that compared to a modest $9m increase (1.5 percent) in revenue. This is taking place in a budget where overall, the
SEE PAGE B3
GB chamber chief: Govt has to tighten its belt too By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE GRAND Bahama Chamber of Commerce president said more focus needs to be put on public expenditure and the government needs to tighten its belt just like the average Bahamian. James Carey told Tribune Business the focus on revenue leads Bahamians to leave expenditures as an afterthought when the government really needs to cut out all of the unnecessary spending. Responding to the government’s latest August and September fiscal numbers
JAMES CAREY and the revelation there was a $47m increase in total spending, resulting in a near tripling of the government’s Q1 deficit year-over-year, Mr Carey said: “Everybody focuses on the revenue, right, but they don’t know
SEE PAGE B3
Online sales thriving - but in-store down on last year By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net BAHAMIAN retailers are reporting a mixed Christmas sales period, but online platforms showed strong performance. Keva Gottlieb, manager at The Sports Centre in the Harbour Bay Shopping Plaza, told Tribune Business that this year’s Christmas sales did not beat last year’s sales despite the store having the appearance of being crowded. “We were down a little bit from last year, but it wasn’t bad, I think because a lot of people are able to travel now it wasn’t as good as
last year, because they just lifted the ban in May, but overall it wasn’t a bad year. “The stores were packed, but the numbers didn’t add up like how they did last year, but we can’t complain.” The Sports Centre is doing a lot of returns now and don’t expect another rush into the store for the end of the year despite having marked down prices, but Ms Gottlieb is hoping that business picks up before the end of the week. Brent Burrows Jr, CBS Bahamas vice-president of retail and sales, said sales ended up being
SEE PAGE B3
CENTRAL BANK OF THE BAHAMAS
Central Bank expects growth at ‘moderated pace’ in economy By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net THE Central Bank revealed yesterday that the reduction in external reserve balances for November slowed by over $77.8m from 2022, reflective of net foreign currency outflows through the private sector. The regulator’s monthly economic report maintained that the Bahamian economy will sustain its growth momentum, albeit at a “moderated pace” with indicators moving closer to their expected mediumterm trajectory.
“During the review month, the reduction in external reserves slowed to $30.6m from $108.4m in the preceding year, for an ending balance of $2,463.4m,” the Central Bank said. “Underpinning this development, the Central Bank’s foreign currency transactions with the public sector reversed to a net intake of $17.0m, from a net sale of $53.5m in the preceding year. “Further, the Central Bank’s net foreign currency sales to commercial banks moderated to $48.9m, from $61.9m in the previous year.
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PAGE 2, Thursday, December 28, 2023
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Departures up nearly a quarter in November, says Central Bank By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net THE tourism sector recording “healthy growth” with departures up 23.9 percent in November with the economy forecasted to maintain its growth trajectory for the remainder of the year, the Central Bank said yesterday. The banking regulator, unveiling its monthly economic developments for November said that travel demands from “key source markets” have resulted in
increased air and sea traffic further sustaining the country’s tourism rebound. “The most recent data provided by the Nassau Airport Development Company Limited (NAD) indicated that total departures in November—net of domestic passengers—rose by 11.3 percent to 0.12 million, relative to the same period last year”, the Central Bank said. “Specifically, US departures expanded by 12.1 percent to 0.10 million, while non-U.S departures grew by 7.1 percent to 0.02 million, vis-à-vis the previous year. “On a year-to-date basis, total outbound traffic advanced by 23.9 percent to approximately 1.5 million passengers. In particular, US departures increased by 24.1 percent to 1.3 million visitors, compared to the same period in 2022. Likewise, non-US departures rose by 22.7 percent to 0.2 million visitors, relative to the comparative period last year”
The Central Bank also revealed a decline in the short-term vacation rental market, with occupancy rates for both entire place and hotel comparable listings decreasing from November 2022 numbers. It said: “As it relates to the short-term vacation rental market, the latest data provided by AirDNA showed that in November, total room nights sold declined to 118,203 from 119,105 in the corresponding 2022 period. “Contributing to this outturn, the occupancy rates for both entire place and hotel comparable listings fell to 46.2 percent and 47.2 percent, respectively, visà-vis 50.3 percent and 48.3 percent in the prior year. “Likewise, price indicators revealed that year-over-year, the average daily room rate (ADR) for entire place listings decreased by 4.3 percent to $527.87 and for hotel comparable listings, by 0.2 percent to $190.63.”
CARIFORUM-UK JOINT COUNCIL INAUGURATES UNDER ECONOMIC AFFAIRS LEADERSHIP MINISTER of Economic Affairs Michael Halkitis chaired the first meeting of the CARIFORUM-UK Joint Council via videoconference at the Ministry of Finance on December 19 - the first time ministers of CARIFORUM and the UK met since the signing of the CARIFORUM-UK Economic Partnership Agreement in 2019. The Bahamas assumed the chair of CARIFORUM on July 1 this year. Mr Halkitis serves as the CARIFORUM high representative under the partnership agreement. The director general of CARIFORUM, Alexis
Downes-Amsterdam, and officers from various government ministries, in addition to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Finance, provided technical support to Minister Halkitis during the meeting. During the meeting Minister Halkitis signed the Decision Establishing the Special Committee on Trade in Services and the Decision on the Rules of Procedure for the Joint Council, the Trade and Development Committee and for Special Committees.
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Thursday, December 28, 2023, PAGE 3
GB chamber chief: Govt has to tighten its belt too FROM PAGE B1 how much the government’s really spending. There may be shortfalls in revenue, but we all as individuals have to tighten our belts when things get tight and when the earnings isn’t there.” The government has given no explanation to what the additional expenditure comprises, but there was nothing to suggest it had deviated from its original projections laid
in parliament during the 2023/2024 budget communication and added new projects. Mr Carey said: “We understand that the government has, out of necessity, a lot of things to do with commitments and that sort of stuff but they need to tighten their belts a little bit.” He continued: “I see a lot of travel and that’s for a purpose, but basically I have no issue with
government spending or borrowings once its done to stimulate economic growth and economic development, but I don’t see that in the current spend model. “Governments do certain things to stimulate economic growth and development because at the end of the day what they have in fact been able to do is enhance their revenue by stimulating this developmental process, but that’s not happening and that’s the bottom line.” There are parts of Grand Bahama outside of the city of Freeport that need development that the government has under its
purview, but he said very little attention is being given to it. Meanwhile, the GBCC is moving forward with its own initiatives and is preparing a plan for their 2024 slate of initiatives. “I need to see economic development, I need to see businesses opening and I need to see businesses succeeding,” Mr Carey said. Market research and intelligence is not a primary focus for the GBCC under Mr Carey’s tenure as it was for his predecessor, but he is “looking for opportunities” for entrepreneurs to find a place in the Grand Bahamian economy.
Opposition raises ONLINE SALES THRIVING - BUT alarm over skyrocketing IN-STORE DOWN ON LAST YEAR Q1 deficit FROM PAGE B1 Adriano Baldacci, Micronet’s marketing manFROM PAGE B1
government is projecting that revenue is to increase by 16 percent and spending only by a half percent. “But with the extravagant and unnecessary spending by this reckless PLP government, spending is increasing significantly while revenue is staying flat. What is also troubling about the September report in particular is the decrease in total revenue particularly
VAT for the month when compared to last year September. Also for the month of September, we saw a tremendous increase in spending this year compared to last year September. This trend cannot continue.” He added: “We note for the record that the government still has nine outstanding budgetary and fiscal responsibility council reports, some of which are over a year late.”
“comparable” to last year with no real increase or decrease in revenue. “Everyone got their items on time. Our online platform made up between 15 percent to 20 percent of overall sales. “Demand held up straight through December 24. Of course, on December 23 and 24 we saw more in store pickups; people beating the lines, coming in and getting out so they can be on their way.”
ager, also said that sales were up overall and online sales “nearly doubled” this year. Tanya Bain, retail manager at the Perfume Bar, said: “Our sales targets were 20 percent higher this year for our stores. Based on the sales numbers, it looks like all of them will achieve their targets. We are extremely grateful to our faithful local customers that made this happen.”
CHINA SANCTIONS A US RESEARCH FIRM AND 2 INDIVIDUALS OVER REPORTS ON HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN XINJIANG BEIJING Associated Press CHINA says it is banning a United States research company and two analysts who have reported extensively on claims of human rights abuses committed against Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups native to the country's far northwestern region of Xinjiang. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning was quoted as announcing late
Tuesday night that Los Angeles-based research and data analytics firm Kharon, its director of investigations, Edmund Xu, and Nicole Morgret, a human rights analyst affiliated with the Center for Advanced Defense Studies, would be barred from traveling to China. Also, any assets or property they have in China will be frozen and organizations and individuals in China are prohibited from making transactions or
otherwise cooperating with them. In a statement on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, Mao said the sanctions against the company, Xu and Morgret were retaliation for a yearly U.S. government report on human rights in Xinjiang. Uyghurs and other natives of the region share religious, linguistic and cultural links with the scattered peoples of Central Asia and have long resented the
Chinese Communist Party's heavy-handed control and attempts to assimilate them with the majority Han ethnic group. In a paper published in June 2022, Morgret wrote, "The Chinese government is undertaking a concerted drive to industrialize the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), which has led an increasing number of corporations to establish manufacturing operations there.
Central Bank expects growth at ‘moderated pace’ in economy FROM PAGE B1 In addition, commercial banks’ net outflows to their customers fell to $30.1m, lower than the net sale of $59.7m in 2022.” The Central Bank forecasted that external reserves, although reduced, will stay above international benchmarks supported by the tourism and private sectors. It said: “Further, notwithstanding some anticipated seasonal drawdowns over the remainder of the year, external reserve balances are forecasted to remain robust, staying above international benchmarks, supported by expected foreign currency inflows from tourism and other net private sector receipts. “Consequently, external balances should remain more than adequate to maintain the Bahamian dollar currency peg.” Foreign currency outflows related to current account transactions decreased by $70.1m to $538.7m compared to the same period in 2022. Credit and debit card transactions declined by $53.4m, outflows for oil imports reduced by $26.4m, transfer payments by $8.1m and factor income payments by $2.3m. Foreign currency sales for non-oil imports increased by $19.6 m and travel related transactions by $0.5 m. As for the credit quality of the commercial banking system, Central Bank said the quality indicators were “incrementally improved” with an increase of $0.3m or 0.1 percent in November. As a portion of total outstanding credit, loans in arrears fell by 4 basis points to 10 percent of the total.
The Central Bank reported declines in nonperforming mortgages by 6 basis points to 8.8 percent, consumer loans by 14 basis points to 4.9 percent and commercial loans by 14 basis points to 4.7 percent. It said: “An analysis by average age of delinquency revealed that the shortterm segment (31-90 days) grew by $4.9m (2.7percent) to $183.1m, with the associated ratio firming by 7 basis points to 3.4percent. “In contrast, nonperforming loans (NPLs) declined by $4.6m (1.3percent) to $361.7m, resulting in a narrowing in the accompanying ratio by 11 basis points to 6.6 percent—with reductions in NPL rates for consumer loans, by 14 basis points to 4.9percent; commercial loans, by 14 basis points to 4.7percent; and mortgages, by 6 basis points to 8.8 percent. “A disaggregation by loan type showed that the uptick in total delinquencies was owing primarily to a rise in mortgage arrears, which rose by $8.4m (2.5 percent) to $343.2m, underpinned by an increase in the short-term component, by $10.0m (8.7percent), which overshadowed the $1.6m (0.7percent) decline in nonaccrual loans. “Providing some offset, consumer arrears fell by $5.1m (3.3 percent) to $150.0m, on account of reductions in both the short and long-term categories, by $2.8m (5.0 percent) and by $2.3m (2.3 percent), respectively. Further, commercial loan delinquencies decreased by $3.0m (5.5 percent) to $51.7m, as short-term arrears fell by $2.3m (33.3 percent) and NPLs by $0.7m (1.5 percent).”
PAGE 4, Thursday, December 28, 2023
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STOCK MARKET TODAY
Wall Street drifts higher as a strong year for markets winds down By DAMIAN J. TROISE AP Business Writer WALL Street drifted to a slightly higher close as trading remained light on this holiday-shortened week. The subdued activity in the market with two trading days left in the year is capping off a broader rally to a strong finish. The S&P 500 is coming of its eight straight winning week and is hovering just below its
all-time high set in January of 2022. The S&P 500 rose 6.83 points, or 0.1%, to 4,781.58. It is up 24% for the year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 111.19 points, or 0.3%, to close at 37,656.52. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 24.60 points, or 0.2%, to 15,099.18. It has outpaced other major indexes with a gain of 44% this year.
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"Consistent buying pressure of this magnitude is not only rare but a bullish sign for improving investor sentiment and market momentum," said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial, in a note to investors. Health care stocks and a mix of retailers had some of the strongest gains. Eli Lilly rose 1.9% and Costco rose 1.1%. U.S. crude oil prices fell 1.9% and weighed down energy stocks. Marathon Oil fell 1.2%. Markets in Europe and Asia gained ground. Bond yields fell significantly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which influences mortgage rates,
fell to 3.79% from 3.90% late Tuesday. Yields have been falling over hopes that inflation has cooled enough for the Federal Reserve to consider cutting interest rates in 2024. Several biotechnology companies made big moves after giving investors updates on drug development. Cytokinetics surged 82.5% on an encouraging study update for a potential heart condition treatment. Iovance Biotherapeutics shed 18.7% after pausing a study on a potential lung cancer treatment because of a possible safety issue. The New York Times rose 2.8% after filing a federal lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft over copyright
infringement, seeking to end the practice of using its stories without permission to train chatbots. The final week of 2023 lacks any big economic updates. Overall, investors have been encouraged by reports showing inflation is on the decline even as the economy appears stronger than expected. The Fed is walking a tightrope, seeking to slow the economy enough through high interest rates to cool inflation, but not so much that it tips the nation into recession. Inflation slowed to a rate of 2.6% in November, according to a measure closely followed by the Fed. That's down from 7.1% in the middle of 2022 and
edging closer to the central bank's target of 2% inflation. U.S. economic growth has been steady since contracting in the middle of 2022 and sharply accelerated in the third quarter of 2023. The data have raised hopes that the economy will likely avoid a recession, or at least avoid a significant one. They have also encouraged Wall Street to bet that the Fed is done raising interest rates and will likely shift to rate cuts in the new year. The central bank has held rates steady since its meeting in July, and Wall Street expects it to start cutting rates as early as March.
CASINOS, HOSPITAL ASK JUDGE TO HALT ATLANTIC CITY ROAD NARROWING, SAY TRAFFIC COULD COST JOBS, LIVES HEAVY equipment repaves part of Atlantic Avenue in Atlantic City, N.J. on Dec. 13, 2023 as the city's controversial "road diet" project to narrow the main roadway from two lanes in each direction to one began. Five casinos and a hospital are asking a judge to order a halt to the plan, saying it could dangerously worsen traffic in the seaside gambling resort. Photo:Wayne Parry/AP
By WAYNE PARRY Associated Press FIVE Boardwalk casinos and a hospital want a judge to prevent Atlantic City from completing a controversial program to narrow the main road running through the city's downtown, saying such a move could hurt business and endanger lives during traffic-choked periods. The AtlantiCare hospital system, and Caesars, Tropicana, Bally's, Hard Rock and Resorts casinos, are asking a state Superior Court judge to order an end to the project, which began Dec. 13. The city says the federal and state-funded project will make a dangerous road safer at no cost to local taxpayers. Officials said narrowing the road was a requirement for accepting the $24 million in government funds.
Last Friday, Judge Michael Blee in Atlantic County declined to issue the immediate order the casinos and the hospital had sought to stop the project in its tracks. Rather, the judge will hear full details of the situation in a Jan. 26 hearing. Mark Giannantonio, president of Resorts as well as of the Casino Association of New Jersey, the industry's trade group, said the casinos support the repaving and traffic light synchronization aspects of the project, which is aimed at reducing pedestrian fatalities and injuries on 2.6 miles (4.2 kilometers) of Atlantic Avenue. But he said a full study needs to be done to examine the potential impacts of narrowing the road. He also said such a plan must be approved by a state agency, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority,
which has power over traffic in the area that includes Atlantic Avenue. He said the casinos have been asking the city for over a year to do such a study, which would try to predict how traffic would be pushed onto other roads in more residential neighborhoods, as well as onto Pacific Avenue, which he said is already overwhelmed by traffic during peak hours. The six Boardwalk casinos have entrances along Pacific Avenue. "This change in traffic patterns on Atlantic Avenue could have very real public health, safety and general welfare implications," Giannantonio said in a statement. He said the hospital's ambulances routinely use Atlantic Avenue to transport critically ill or injured patients to its trauma center, adding the elimination of one lane could
deprive the emergency vehicles of a passing lane to get around stopped traffic. He also noted that Atlantic Avenue is one of the main evacuation routes in the frequently flooded coastal resort city. Regarding the impact on casinos, he said, "We are fearful that this will cause congestion and traffic problems all of which would detract from our customers' experience in coming to and leaving our properties." It is not an unfounded concern; even with four lanes available on Atlantic Avenue, Atlantic City can become difficult to drive through during busy summer or holiday periods, especially when special events like the summer air show or one or more bigname concerts are in town. Mayor Marty Small defended the project, and took heart from the judge's decision not to issue an immediate order halting work. A city-commissioned study on which the plan is partially based counted 829 collisions on the road between 2013 and 2017. Of those, 75 — or 9.1% — involved pedestrians being struck. Small said he knew several people who were killed in accidents on Atlantic Avenue. "Some very powerful people have been trying to stop this project since its inception, but the Small administration has been standing up to all of them," he said in a statement issued after Friday's ruling. "People keep wanting to make this about traffic flow, but this project is being done in the name of safety for the residents and visitors." The Greater Atlantic City Chamber, one of numerous business organizations in the city, also supports the repaving and traffic signal synchronization work. But the group says it, too, wants to see a traffic study on the impact of reducing road space by 50%.
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Thursday, December 28, 2023, PAGE 5
THE NEW YORK TIMES SUES OPENAI AND MICROSOFT FOR USING ITS STORIES TO TRAIN CHATBOTS A SIGN for The New York Times hangs above the entrance to its building, Thursday, May 6, 2021 in New York. The New York Times filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft on Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023 seeking to end the practice of using published material to train chatbots. Photo:Mark Lennihan/AP
By HALELUYA HADERO and DAVID BAUDER Associated Press THE New York Times is striking back against the threat that artificial intelligence poses to the news industry, filing a federal lawsuit Wednesday against OpenAI and Microsoft seeking to end the practice of using its stories to train chatbots. The Times says the companies are threatening its livelihood by effectively stealing billions of dollars worth of work by its journalists, in some cases spitting out Times’ material verbatim to people who seek answers from generative artificial intelligence like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The newspaper’s lawsuit was filed in federal court in Manhattan and follows what appears to be a breakdown in talks between the newspaper and the two companies, which began in April. The media has already been pummeled by a migration of readers to online platforms. While many publications — most notably the Times — have successfully carved out a digital space, the rapid development of AI threatens to significantly upend the publishing industry. Web traffic is an important component of the paper’s advertising revenue and helps drive subscriptions to its online site. But the outputs from AI chatbots divert that traffic away from the paper and other copyright holders, the Times says, making it less likely that users will visit the original source for the information. “These bots compete with the content they are trained on,” said Ian B. Crosby, partner and lead counsel at Susman Godfrey, which is representing The Times. An OpenAI spokesperson said in a prepared statement that the company respects the rights of content creators and is “committed” to working with them to help them benefit from the technology and new revenue models. “Our ongoing conversations with the New York Times have been productive and moving forward constructively, so we are surprised and disappointed with this development,” the spokesperson said. “We’re hopeful that we will find a mutually beneficial way to work together, as we are doing with many other publishers.” Microsoft did not respond to requests for comment. Artificial intelligence companies scrape information available online, including articles published by news organizations, to train generative AI chatbots. The large language models are also trained on a huge trove of other humanwritten materials, which helps them to build a strong command of language and grammar and to answer questions correctly. But the technology is still under development and gets many things wrong. In its lawsuit, for example, the Times said OpenAI’s GPT-4 falsely attributed product recommendations to Wirecutter, the paper’s product reviews site, endangering its reputation. OpenAI and other AI companies, including rival Anthropic, have attracted billions of dollars in investments very rapidly since public and business interest in the technology exploded, particularly this year. Microsoft has a partnership with OpenAI that allows it to capitalize on the company’s AI technology. The Redmond, Washington, tech giant is also OpenAI’s biggest backer and has invested at least $13 billion into the company since the two began their partnership in 2019, according to the lawsuit. As part of the agreement, Microsoft’s supercomputers help power OpenAI’s AI research and the tech giant integrates the startup’s technology into its products. The paper’s complaint comes as the number
of lawsuits filed against OpenAI for copyright infringement is growing. The company has been sued by several writers — including comedian Sarah Silverman — who say their books were ingested to train OpenAI’s AI models without their permission. In June, more than 4,000 writers signed a letter to the CEOs of OpenAI and other tech companies accusing them of exploitative practices in building chatbots.
As AI technology develops, growing fears over its use have also fueled labor strikes and lawsuits in other industries, including Hollywood. Different stakeholders are realizing the technology could disrupt their entire business model, but the question will be how to respond to it, said Sarah Kreps, director of Cornell University’s Tech Policy Institute. Kreps said she agrees The New York Times is facing a threat from these chatbots.
But she also argued solving the issue completely is going to be an uphill battle. “There’s so many other language models out there that are doing the same thing,” she said. The lawsuit filed Wednesday cited examples of OpenAI’s GPT-4 spitting out large portions of news articles from the Times, including a Pulitzer-Prize winning investigation into New York City’s taxi industry that took 18 months to complete. It also cited
outputs from Bing Chat — now called Copilot — that included verbatim excerpts from Times articles. The Times did not list specific damages that it is seeking, but said the legal action “seeks to hold them responsible for the billions of dollars in statutory and actual damages that they owe” for copying and using its work. It is also asking the court to order the tech companies to destroy AI models or data sets that incorporate its work. The News/Media Alliance, a trade group representing more than 2,200 news organizations, applauded Wednesday’s action by the Times. “Quality journalism and GenAI can complement each other if approached collaboratively,” said Danielle Coffey, alliance president and CEO. “But using journalism without permission or payment is unlawful, and certainly not fair use.” In July, OpenAI and The Associated Press announced a deal for the artificial intelligence
company to license AP’s archive of news stories. This month, OpenAI also signed a similar partnership with Axel Springer, a media company in Berlin that owns Politico and Business Insider. Under the deal, users of OpenAI’s ChatGPT will receive summaries of “selected global news content” from Axel Springer’s media brands. The companies said the answers to queries will include attribution and links to the original articles. The Times has compared its action to a copyright lawsuit more than two decades ago against Napster, when record companies sued the file-sharing service for unlawful use of their material. The record companies won and Napster was soon gone, but it has had a major impact on the industry. Industry-endorsed streaming now dominates the music business.
PAGE 8, Thursday, December 28, 2023
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EDMUNDS
The best plug-in hybrids for driving without filling up on gas By CHRISTIAN WARDLAW Associated Press BUYING a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle is a great way to try living with an electric vehicle without giving up the convenience of using gasoline for longer trips. They're perfect for driving shorter commutes, shuttling kids to school, and running local errands on electricity. But when your plans call for a longer trip, a plug-in hybrid's gasoline engine takes over and makes it possible to drive across the city or the entire country without recharging the battery. The latest plug-in vehicles offer more electric driving range than in the past. Edmunds researched current range estimates and chose five models in different vehicle classes that can travel an impressive distance using nothing but electricity. They are listed below by lowest to highest base price. SMALL CAR: 2024 TOYOTA PRIUS PRIME Most people know what a Toyota Prius is. The Prius
Prime is the plug-in hybrid version of the iconic hybrid car. It's able to travel up to an EPA-estimated 45 miles on nothing but electricity. After that, it will get up to 52 mpg in combined city/ highway driving when used as a traditional hybrid. Because the Prius Prime supplies 220 horsepower and surprisingly speedy acceleration, each of its three trim levels is sportthemed. The Prius Prime offers plenty of utility too, thanks to its five-passenger, four-door hatchback configuration. Open the hatch, fold the back seat down, and you might decide this Prius Prime is a credible alternative to a small crossover SUV. However, the most surprising thing about the 2024 Prius Prime is its sense of style, which Toyota no longer sacrifices at the altar of sensibility. Starting manufacturer's suggested retail price: $33,770 SMALL SUV: 2024 TOYOTA RAV4 PRIME If the Prius Prime is too small, or you want a plug-in hybrid with all-wheel drive, Toyota has another model
THIS photo provided by Kia shows the Sorento Plug-in Hybrid. A midsize SUV with three rows of seating, the Plug-in Hybrid version can drive 32 miles on all electric power. Photo:Kia America/AP worthy of consideration: the RAV4 Prime. You can get this plug-in version of the popular RAV4 in two trim levels, each providing an EPA-estimated 42 miles of electric-only range and returning 38 mpg in combined driving when used as a hybrid. In addition
to efficiency, the RAV4 Prime offers a remarkable 302 horsepower, making it mighty quick. And when the weather goes from delightful to frightful, the standard all-wheel-drive system makes the most of available traction.
Legal Notice NOTICE
EYRE LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a)
Eyre Limited is in voluntary dissolution under the provisions of Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000.
(b)
The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 27th day of December 2023 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General.
(c)
The Liquidator of the said Company is Delco Investments Limited of Deltec Bank & Trust Limited, Deltec House, Lyford Cay, P.O. Box N-3229, Nassau, Bahamas.
Delco Investments Limited Liquidator
Five people fit inside the RAV4 Prime, and this compact crossover SUV is one of the roomiest models in its class for hauling cargo. So, if you don't mind paying entry-level luxury SUV prices for a Toyota, the RAV4 Prime is ready to tackle nearly any task. Starting MSRP: $44,790 THREE-ROW SUV: 2024 KIA SORENTO PLUG-IN HYBRID For a larger midsize SUV with a third-row seat, consider the Kia Sorento Plug-in Hybrid. It offers seating for six and more cargo room than the RAV4 Prime. Equipped with a hybrid powertrain good for 261 horsepower, the Sorento Plug-In Hybrid provides an estimated 32 miles of electric-only range and 34 mpg in combined driving when used as a hybrid. Like the RAV4 Prime, it includes standard all-wheel drive. Only one trim level is available, and it's expensive. But Kia loads it up with standard features and covers it with one of the best warranty coverage plans you can get. Starting MSRP: $51,315 MINIVAN: 2024 CHRYSLER PACIFICA HYBRID If the Kia isn't big enough for your brood, consider the Chrysler
Pacifica Hybrid, a sevenpassenger minivan boasting nearly as much cargo space as a Chevy Suburban. With a Pacifica Hybrid, you can drive 32 miles on electricity and then average 30 mpg in combined driving when using the minivan as a hybrid. Keep it charged up, and this Chrysler can effortlessly handle kidshuttling, grocery-getting, and other typical minivan tasks without burning a drop of gasoline. Five trim levels are available, including sporty, upscale and road-trip-ready versions, ensuring one might appeal to you. Starting MSRP: $54,825 LUXURY CAR: 2023 MERCEDES-BENZ S 580e For a big injection of luxury to go with your plugin hybrid aspirations, try the Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedan in 580e specification. It provides 46 miles of electric-only range and 23 mpg in combined driving when used as a hybrid. Unfortunately, this big Benz has a tiny trunk. But it seats five people, delivers the performance you expect from a Mercedes, and oozes style, class and sophistication. Notably, this plug-in hybrid also has the rare capability to charge at public fast-charging stations.
NOTICE
CAPITALCORNER ENTERPRISES INC. Incorporated under the International Business Companies Act of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. Registration Number 19,472 B (In Voluntary Liquidation) Notice is hereby given that the above-named Company is in dissolution, commencing on the 1st day of November, 2023. Articles of Dissolution have been duly registered by the Registrar. The Liquidator is Karim Van den Ende, c/o 17, boulevard Royal, L – 2449 Luxembourg. Persons having a Claim against the abovenamed Company are required on or before the 1st day of January, 2024 to send their names, addresses and particulars of their debts or claims to the Liquidator of the Company, or in default thereof they may be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made before such claim is proved.
Dated this 28th day of December, 2023 Karim Van den Ende Liquidator
NOTICE This is to inform the general public that the prvate roadways and parking areas situated in the
Harbour Bay Shopping Plaza between East Bay Street and Shirley Street will be closed on MONDAY, 1ST JANUARY 2024 in order to preserve the right of way ownership thereof. - The Owners
from a 9 dis Thursday, December 28, 2023, PAGE 23 Produced
ARRIVAL ARRIVES ASPECTS CATCHES DECIDES DESIGNS DEVOTED SISTERS ADDRESSES DESCENDED DISMISSES FRACTIONS LIFEBOATS PETROLEUM PRETTIEST RELIGIOUS SHIVERING SUGGESTED TERRIFIED VEGETABLE
THE TRIBUNE
JUDGE PARKER
fortified w 25 European surroundi 26 Refuse to Nick’s son unexpecte 27 Abandon 28 Royal’s ho by reporte
P A T C H CARPE DIEM
For today’s solution call: 0907 181 2584 *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone company’s network access charge.
LAST SATURDAY’S SOLUTION ACROSS Busking, Gubbins, Brawl, Landscape, Sled, Motet, Rout, Terse, Segregate, Orchestra, Amass, Tent, Eider, Vend, Architect, Crave, Torrent, Confess. DOWN Babysat, Slake, Idle, Gallows, Ginseng, Bust, Inamorata, Spectre, Jewel, Cedar, Racing car, Ear, Outcast, Trisect, Aseptic, Sadness, Elate, Hide, Scan
THE DAILY EXPRESS 30-SECOND CHALLENGE TODAY’S ANSWERS: BEGINNER = 9; INTERMEDIATE = 267; ADVANCED = 19.
MARVIN BATTLESHIPS 4
BLONDIE 2
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Puzzles T R E
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1 x Battleship
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2 x Cruiser PRIZE CROSSWORD CRUSADER 1
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DVE ASH
ACROSS DOWN 3 x Destroyer 1 Untutored small pixie 1 Tasty socialist leader gets paid sounded stretched (4-6) off (5) 6 Employed American 2 Organise a full demo for soil 4 x Submarine additive (4,5) journalist (4) 10 Yokel is nice, but left out (7) 3 Entrant’s candle used in some SATURDAY’S 11 Footwear for LAST idle people (7) meditation (14) SOLUTION 4 Nut upset woman? That’s a 12 Mutes most of trivial objection in lie (7) disappointment (4,5) 5 Harold with one objection – 13 Pub introduced loud turn fish (7) that’s tongue-in-cheek (2,3) 7 Woman with a folio bundle (5) 14 Put out some medicine 8 Infection is trendy, yes, but around university (5) wrong (9) 15 Problem, increase will travel 9 Running off with the best for free (9) cosmetic (9,5) 17 Graduate to immorality 14 Beach dude, terribly after father gives dodgy corrupt (9) counsel (3,6) 16 I am to vitiate criminal 20 Inquisitive about his heart copying (9) being loud (5) 18 At home, used dates as a 21 One of several popes from substitute (7) the city (5) 19 Cultivating osier – no natural FIND where the fleet of ships shown is hidden in the 23 Train owlsgrid. to fly The beforenumbers to process (7) dawdler 22 Graduate the right of and below the grid indicate how many of(9) the squares in that row gets prisoner some The race around some breakfast (5) are filled in with ships or parts of ships. The25ships do not touch each other, land (7) 24 Pays attention to ambassador even diagonally. Some squares have been filled in Tim to start you off. 26 I see rewriting and journalists (5) catalogue (7) 27 Study the first sign of damage (4) 28 Maybe one’s probabilities, getting less sensitive (3,7)
C
0
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3
DENNIS THE MENACE
company’s network access charge.
BATTLESHIPS
squares in that row are filled in with ships or parts of ships. The ships do not touch each other, even diagonally. Some squares have been filled in to start you off. Solution on Monday 1
CRYPTIC PUZZLE
with a troublemaker (5) 10 He became proverbially rich from various sources (7) 11 One needs it to understand information (12) 13 Left a number at the gate (6) 14 A small bureau’s made up of experts (6) 17 Increasing distress suffered by the young? (7,5) 20 About ten Tolstoy’s heroine is on the radio (7) 21 Vegetable has one on both sides (5) 22 Foolish people pass out (4) 23 The boss sent around pupils (8)
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1 Twice reduced
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(7) 3 I can’t promise to make
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address (6)
7 The last thing a crowd will
19 20
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do (8) 8 A worthy person, as yet lacking polish (5,7)
22
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12 Telescope for a secret agent on a vessel (8) 15 Board one first writes on (7) 16 Horrified at being cut by jagged gash (6) 18 Where to keep the hose readily available (2,3) 19 We appear to be bearing the responsibility (4)
Yesterday’s Cryptic Solution Across: 1 Delegates, 8 Irate, 9 Corsica, 10 Akimbo, 11 Bertha, 12 Material, 15 Imprison, 18 Trance, 20 Tingle, 21 Doorway, 22 Run in, 23 Gruelling. Down: 2 Elope, 3 Ersatz, 4 Arc lamps, 5 Sickle, 6 Barmaid, 7 Aeroplane, 11 Banisters, 13 Ten to one, 14 Opening, 16 Idling, 17 Barrel, 19 Chain.
Yesterday’s Easy Solution Across: 1 Last-ditch, 8 Alarm, 9 Divorce, 10 Global, 11 Mirage, 12 Anathema, 15 Ephemera, 18 Repast, 20 Humble, 21 Thrifty, 22 Farce, 23 Truculent. Down: 2 Alibi, 3 Trojan, 4 Increase, 5 Hamlet, 6 Gambler, 7 Smell a rat, 11 Makeshift, 13 Anarchic, 14 Chimera, 16 Mallet, 17 Uphill, 19 Satin.
Across 1 A governmental finance department (8) 5 Commotion over trivia (4) 9 Dull yellowishbrown (5) 10 Having pleasant smell (7) 11 Everything needed for a business (5-2-5) 13 North polar region (6) 14 Writing instrument (6) 17 Less than amount paid for (5,7) 20 Archipelago off Florida coast (7) 21 Hatred and contempt (5) 22 Be paid as wage (4) 23 Much sought after (2,6)
3
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4 x Submarine
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crime (5)
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2 x Cruiser 7
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6 Clergyman has no head for
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changes. Curses! (12) 4 Break into a politician’s
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painters - it’s not so wide
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by 50% (4) 2 Used by economical
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Down
EASY PUZZLE
9 A primate goes into church
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about one (4)
11 GET TH
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THE ALPHABEATER
9 Hotel patron (5) LAST SATURDAY’S SOLUTION ACROSS 1 Forecast, 6 Asia, 8 Ashes, 10 From the direction of 11 County, 12 Mats, 14 Tau, 15 Stirs, 16 Old, 17 Erie, the rising sun (7) 19 Dragon, 20 Stunt, 21 Fuel, 22 Recently. 13 Consumed (5) DOWN 1 Farmhouse, 2 Riot, 3 Candidate, 4 Shy, FIND where fleet of ships 18the Tresses (4)shown is hidden 5 Assuredly, 7 Scarlet, 9 Stare, 10 Examine, in the grid. The numbers to the right of and 13 Stern, 18 Rout, 19 Due. 19 Farewell (3)many of the below the grid indicate how
(8)
3
SMALL CROSSWORD CROSSWORD SMALL
C T E NHR TAN
5 Reputed to be unhappy
2
CAN you cra your15mental H 3 in Alphapuzz the given let I 1 To18 add to19 same if you t J 2 So, for exa 23 3 1 0 3 1 4 2 1 5 0 a correspond Every blac number. This 26 correspondin A 33 37 27 28 B TODAY’S TARGET C 18 34 Good 22; very good 33; D excellent 43 (or more). E 40 8 Solution next Saturday. ACROSS TA F 1 Well-known (8) T 1 2 3 4 5TARGET G 38 15 6 Second-hand (4) LAST SATURDAY’S 38 m H 8 Concur (5) ● The CANSOLUTION you crack the Alphabeater? Each grid Extra letter c 6 7 8 9 10 11 Edible seed (6)Target number represents a letter – or black square. 23 181 1725 I0907 codon coin coition uses As in Alphapuzzle, every letter of the alphabet words in 12 Body of water (4) (Deduct three minu J CONDITION condo the main is used. But you have to complete the grid too! each extra clue lette 11 14 Burnt remainsbody (3)of coot iconsquares idiotbelow K 22Full solution 12 Use the givendiction letters and black Chambers 15 Stop briefly (5) the grid to start. The grid is ‘rotationally into ionic noon notion L0907 181 25 21st 16 Alcoholic spiritCentury (3) 12 13 14 symmetrical’ in other words, looks the *Calls cost 80p per mi onion – onto otic ittonic 14telephone2 com M your Dictionary same if you turn the page upside down. 17 At that time (4) (1999 N network access ch Solution on Monday edition) 19 Pauper (6) 15 20 _ Gretzky, former ice A 22 39 35 38 2 17 38 12 33 O 105 21 1818 P hockey player (5) B HOW many words of four letters or 16 17 18 C 16 3 8 13 18 24 7 33 31 Q 33 26 16 7 29 21 you Metallic element (4) more can make from the letters D shown 22 here? Quantifies (8) R E 5 9 14 17 20 33 16 3 11 13 17 23 In making a word, each letter may be 19 8 used once only. Each must contain S 9 F the centre letter and there must be at DOWN G 26 23 30 10 13 39 18 20 8 T 16 40 33 least one nine-letter word. No plurals. 20 21 H 1 At adult size (4-5) Verb forms ending in S permitted. 24 12 3423 I 31 12 2 23 21 7 33 19 35 U 37 2 Submissive (4) Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid TODAY’S TARGET J V with several given numbers. The object is to place the 3 very Unseal gagexcellent (anag.)47(9) K 19 5 20 20 36 14 4 10 5 16 39 8 22 Good 24; good 36; numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so the each row, each 12 W 7 (or 4 more). Solution works on Monday Creative (3) L column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only X 30 10 14 37 17 37 14 34 21 19 22 3 M 5 People who repair once. The difficulty level of the Sudoku increases from 181 2585 N 4 3 Monday to Sunday For today’s solution call: 0907 181 2583 Call 0907 Y cars (9) today’s Target solution 36 30 1 27 24 33 36 6 33 39 O 26 5 *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone company’s network access charge. for 7 Kitchen utensil (7) Z *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone P
CALVIN & HOBBES
1 Completely wrong direction
1
HOW many words of four letters or more can you make14from the letters shown here? In making a word, each 17 letter may be used once only. Each must contain the centre letter and22 21 there must be at least one nine-letter word. 25 forms No plurals. Verb ending in “s” permitted.
1 HAGAR THE HORRIBLE
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Daily Express Friday, September 8, 2023
DOWN 1 Small veh comfortab 2 Average q greatest i 3 Hot union terribly ru 4 Gun held 6 Account a synthetic 7 Scandinav 8 Ruined so upset (8) 9 Diamonds 14 Storytelle short Con 16 Host, stub capturing undernou DX1ST 17 Pledged t blended (8 19 Skating ar German t 21 First to ta treachery 22 Article on dissertatio 24 Feeble pe tears (5) 4 25 Title of 5Sp house nor
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1
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● Alternatively, for six Extra Letter clues to your mobile, text DXBEAT to 64343. Texts cost £1 plus your usual operator r
KEIJO 2 4
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Solution Monda
PAGE 10, Thursday, December 28, 2023
THE TRIBUNE
SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES MADE $11 BILLION IN US AD REVENUE FROM MINORS, HARVARD STUDY FINDS By BARBARA ORTUTAY and HALELUYA HADERO AP Technology Writers SOCIAL media companies collectively made over $11 billion in U.S. advertising revenue from minors last year, according to a study from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health published on Wednesday. The researchers say the findings show a need for government regulation of social media since the companies that stand to make money from children who use their platforms have failed to meaningfully self-regulate. They note such regulations, as well as greater transparency from tech companies, could help alleviate harms to youth mental health and curtail potentially harmful advertising practices that target children and adolescents. To come up with the revenue figure, the researchers estimated the number of users under 18 on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube in 2022 based on population data from the U.S. Census and survey data from Common Sense Media and Pew Research. They then used data from research firm eMarketer, now called
Insider Intelligence, and Qustodio, a parental control app, to estimate each platform’s U.S. ad revenue in 2022 and the time children spent per day on each platform. After that, the researchers said they built a simulation model using the data to estimate how much ad revenue the platforms earned from minors in the U.S. Researchers and lawmakers have long focused on the negative effects stemming from social media platforms, whose personally-tailored algorithms can drive children towards excessive use. This year, lawmakers in states like New York and Utah introduced or passed legislation that would curb social media use among kids, citing harms to youth mental health and other concerns. Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, is also being sued by dozens of states for allegedly contributing to the mental health crisis. “Although social media platforms may claim that they can self-regulate their practices to reduce the harms to young people, they have yet to do so, and our study suggests they have overwhelming financial incentives to continue
THIS combination of photos shows logos of X, formerly known as Twitter, top left; Snapchat, top right; Facebook, bottom left; and TikTok, bottom right. Social media companies collectively made over $11 billion in U.S. advertising revenue from minors last year, according to a study from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health released Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2023. Photo:AP
to delay taking meaningful steps to protect children,” said Bryn Austin, a professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Harvard and a senior author on the study. The platforms themselves don’t make public how much money they earn from minors. Social media platforms are not the first to advertise to children, and parents and experts have long expressed concerns about marketing to kids online, on television
and even in schools. But online ads can be especially insidious because they can be targeted to children and because the line between ads and the content kids seek out is often blurry. In a 2020 policy paper, the American Academy of Pediatrics said children are “uniquely vulnerable to the persuasive effects of advertising because of immature critical thinking skills and impulse inhibition.” “School-aged children and teenagers may be able
to recognize advertising but often are not able to resist it when it is embedded within trusted social networks, encouraged by celebrity influencers, or delivered next to personalized content,” the paper noted. As concerns about social media and children’s mental health grow, the Federal Trade Commission earlier this month proposed sweeping changes to a decades-old law that regulates
how online companies can track and advertise to children. The proposed changes include turning off targeted ads to kids under 13 by default and limiting push notifications. According to the Harvard study, YouTube derived the greatest ad revenue from users 12 and under ($959.1 million), followed by Instagram ($801.1 million) and Facebook ($137.2 million).
International Business Companies Act, 2000
NOTICE
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that JACKSON DORGEUS of Forbes Street, Nassau Village, New Providence, 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 why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of December, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
NOTICE is hereby given that JEAN-ROBERT ST JEAN of Marsh Harbour, Abaco, 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 twentyeight days from the 21st day of December, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
SHINING TREE LTD.
In Voluntary Liquidation NOTICE is hereby given that in accordance with Section 138(4) of The International Business Companies Act, 2000, SHINING TREE LTD. is in dissolution. The date of commencement of the dissolution was the 21st day of December A.D., 2023. Mr. Michael C. Miller, P.O. Box EE-17971, Nassau, Bahamas is the liquidator of SHINING TREE LTD. Michael C. Miller Liquidator
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that WISNY JEAN PIERRE, #1 Armbrister Street, The Bahamas 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 21th day of December 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
FIRST LEGAL NOTICE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMPANIES ACT, 2000
Kafka Global Macro Fund Ltd. Voluntary Liquidation NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN in accordance with Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act, 2000 as follows:a)
Kafka Global Macro Fund Ltd. is in dissolution under the provisions of the International Business Companies Act, 2000.
b)
The dissolution of the said Company commenced on 20th December 2023 when its Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General.
c)
The Liquidator of the said Company is Israel Borba whose address is Lyford Financial Centre, Building 2, Western Road, P.O. Box CB-10988, Lyford Cay, New Providence, The Bahamas.
Israel Borba Liquidator
FIRST LEGAL NOTICE INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS COMPANIES ACT, 2000
Strategic Multi-Manager Master USD Fund Ltd. Voluntary Liquidation NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN in accordance with section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act, 2000, the dissolution of Strategic Multi-Manager Master USD Fund Ltd. (the “Company”) has completed, a Certificate of dissolution has been issued and the Company has therefore been struck off the Register. The date of completion of the dissolution was December 05, 2023 Israel Borba Lyford Financial Centre, Building 2, Western Road, P.O. Box CB-10988, Lyford Cay, New Providence, The Bahamas
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, December 28, 2023, PAGE 11
THE YEAR IN CLEAN ENERGY
Wind, solar and batteries grow despite economic challenges
China, Europe, and the U.S. each set solar installation records for a single year, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency. China's additions dwarfed those of all other countries, at somewhere between 180 and 230 gigawatts, depending on how end-of-the-year projects turn out. Europe added 58 gigawatts. Solar is now the cheapest form of electricity in a majority of countries. Solar panel prices fell a whopping 40% to 53% in Europe between December 2022 and November 2023 and are now at record lows. "Particularly in Europe, it's been really at breakneck speed of scaling up the deployment," said Michael Taylor, senior analyst at IRENA. When the final numbers for 2023 are in, solar energy is expected to surpass hydropower in total capacity globally, but for actual electricity produced, hydropower will still make more clean power for some time because it can produce around the clock. In the United States, California continues to have the most solar energy, followed by Texas, Florida, North Carolina, and Arizona. Both state and federal incentives had a large influence on U.S. solar growth, said Daniel Bresette, president of the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, a non-profit education and policy organization. Despite solar's success in 2023, there are hurdles. There has been a shortage of transformers, Bresette said, while interest rates have risen. In the U.S., solar manufacturing grew as well. "We have seen the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act in terms of fueling investments ... more than 60 solar manufacturing facilities were announced over the past year," said Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association.
By the end of 2023, the world will have added enough wind energy to power nearly 80 million homes, making it a record year. As with solar, most of the growth, or more than 58 gigawatts, was added in China, according to research from Wood Mackenzie. China is on track to surpass its ambitious 2030 target of 1,200 gigawatts of utility-scale solar and wind power capacity five years ahead of schedule if planned projects are all built, the Global Energy Monitor said. China was one of the few growing markets this year for wind, the Global Wind Energy Council said. Faster permitting and other improvements in key markets such as Germany and India also helped add more wind energy. But installations were down in Europe by 6% year-over-year, Wood Mackenzie said. Short-term challenges such as high inflation, rising interest rates and increased costs of building materials forced some ocean wind developers to renegotiate or even cancel project contracts, and some land-based wind developers to delay projects to 2024 or 2025. The economic headwinds came at a difficult time for the nascent U.S. offshore wind industry as it tries to launch the nation's first commercial-scale offshore wind farms. Construction began on two this year. Both aim to open early in 2024 and one of the sites is already sending electricity to the U.S. grid. Large offshore wind farms have been making electricity for three decades in Europe, and more recently in Asia. After years of record growth, the industry group American Clean Power expects less land-based wind to be added in the United States by year's end, about enough to power 2.7 million to 3 million homes. The group says developers are taking advantage of new tax credits passed last year in the Inflation Reduction Act, but it takes years to bring the projects online. There has been $383 billion in announced clean energy investments since passage of the IRA, it said. "We're talking about 2023 essentially as a lower performance year, but in the grand scheme of things, 8 to 9 gigawatts is still a number to get excited about. It's a lot of new clean energy that's being added to the grid," said John Hensley, ACP's vice president for research and analytics. Globally the wind buildout was slower this year as well. The top three markets this year are still China, the United States and Germany for wind energy produced on land, and China, the United Kingdom and Germany for offshore. The analysts are predicting that the global industry will rebound next year and make nearly 12% more wind energy available worldwide. In June, the industry celebrated passing 1 terawatt of installed wind energy worldwide. It took more than 40 years to reach that milestone, but it could take less than seven years for the second terawatt, at the pace the industry is on now.
CHALLENGES WIND ENERGY
MASSIVE YEAR FOR BATTERIES
By ISABELLA O'MALLEY, JENNIFER McDERMOTT and ALEXA ST. JOHN Associated Press LED by new solar power, the world added renewable energy at breakneck speed in 2023, a trend that if amplified will help Earth turn away from fossil fuels and prevent severe warming and its effects. Clean energy is often now the least expensive, explaining some of the growth. Nations also adopted policies that support renewables, some citing energy security concerns, according to the International Energy Agency. These factors countered high interest rates and persistent challenges in getting materials and components in many places. The IEA projected that more than 440 gigawatts of renewable energy would be added in 2023, more than the entire installed power capacity of Germany and Spain together. Here's a look at the year in solar, wind and batteries. ANOTHER BANNER YEAR FOR SOLAR
FOR
Amid an ongoing push to make transportation less damaging to the climate, the electric vehicle trend accelerated globally in 2023, with one in five cars sold this year expected to be electric, according to the International Energy Agency. That meant it also turned out to be another banner year for batteries. More than $43.4 billion has been spent on battery manufacturing and battery recycling just in the U.S. this year, thanks largely to the Inflation Reduction Act, according to Atlas Public Policy. This puts the U.S. on a more level playing field with Europe, but still behind battery powerhouse China. As for large battery factories, called gigafactories, the U.S. and Europe each had 38 in the works by late November, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. But China had 295 in the works. The industry continued to explore different ways of making batteries without depending so much on harmful materials, as well as ways of making components more sustainable, and the battery recycling industry made headway, experts said. The cost of key battery raw materials, including lithium, also dropped significantly, Benchmark senior analyst Evan Hartley said. "The battery cost is now on that trajectory that most Americans will be able to afford an EV," said Paul Braun, a University of Illinois professor of materials science and engineering. 2023 wasn't an easy journey. The U.S. industry, in particular navigated several headwinds. A massive Panasonic battery facility in Kansas had energy challenges. Toyota needs to shore up a talent pool for its site in North Carolina. Health and safety violations were found at a joint venture plant between General Motors Co. and LG Energy Solution in Ohio. The list goes on. Regardless of the region, roadblocks remain in minerals, responsible supply chains, and the buildout of charging infrastructure. "That's going to be the next agenda item," John Eichberger, executive director of the Transportation Energy Institute. But experts are optimistic that battery growth across the globe will continue. "The story of batteries in the U.S. in small is the story of batteries globally in 2023 at large," said Daan Walter, principal in the strategy team at the Rocky Mountain Institute, a sustainability research group, "and how momentous this shift in 2023 has been."
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WORKERS install solar panels at the under-construction Adani Green Energy Limited’s Renewable Energy Park in the salt desert of Karim Shahi village, near Khavda, Bhuj district near the IndiaPakistan border in the western state of Gujarat, India, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023. Led by new solar power, the world added renewable energy at breakneck speed in 2023, in an effort to turn away from fossil fuels to stave off severe Earth warming and its effects. Photo:Rafiq Maqbool/AP
CABLE BAHAMAS GROUP LTD NEW BOARD MEMBER ANNOUNCEMENT Cable Bahamas Group Welcomes
Dexter B. Cartwright
as New Board Director Cable Bahamas Group is proud to announce the election of Mr. Dexter B. Cartwright, CPA, MBA, as a new member of its Board of Directors at the Annual General Meeting held at Baha Mar SLS on December 11th, 2023. Mr. Cartwright brings over 25 years of extensive experience in telecommunications finance and operations management, particularly in dynamic and global settings. Currently the Chief Financial & Strategy Officer at South Reach Networks, he has played a crucial role in major corporate initiatives, including network integration and business divestment, leading to significant revenue growth and operational efficiencies. Previously holding the position of CFO at the B2B Division of Cable & Wireless Communications, Mr. Cartwright successfully oversaw finance activities across 26 markets in the Caribbean and Latin America, contributing to enhanced financial and organizational effectiveness. His experience as Interim CEO of Bahamas Telecommunications Company underscores his proficiency in optimizing operational efficiency and implementing strategic cost-reduction methods. Educationally, Mr. Cartwright holds an MBA from the University of Florida and a Bachelor of Accounting, Cum Laude, from Florida International University. His strong leadership and communication skills, make him an ideal choice to help chart the Cable Bahamas Group’s strategic direction and governance.
Cable Bahamas Group Announces
Felix N. Stubbs
as New Board Director Cable Bahamas Group is proud to announce the election of Mr. Felix N. Stubbs, MBE, D.H.L., as a new Director of its Board, at the Annual General Meeting at Baha Mar SLS held on December 11th, 2023. With a distinguished career spanning over 32 years as the past President and General Manager of IBM Bahamas Ltd, Mr. Stubbs has been instrumental in transforming the company’s focus from hardware to software and services. His leadership roles extend to various organizations including The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, the One Eleuthera Foundation, and the Bahamas National Festival Commission. In 2014, Mr. Stubbs chaired the National Development Plan Steering Committee for The Bahamas and received the Bahamian Icon Award for Commerce. His community contributions have been recognized with The William Booth Award from The Salvation Army. He holds an honorary doctorate from BWR Ministries & Seminary and was appointed a Member of The Most Excellent Order of The British Empire in 1996. His commercial experience includes board positions at prominent financial and health institutions. As Chairman of New Providence Ecology Park, he has led significant environmental initiatives. A dedicated Rotarian and recipient of the Sir Durward Knowles Humanitarian Recognition Award, Mr. Stubbs, alongside his wife, Madam Justice Carla Card-Stubbs, is committed to community service.
PAGE 12, Thursday, December 28, 2023
THE TRIBUNE