The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A Mexican company has removed from its website promotional material claiming it has the necessary approvals to dredge for, and export, "aragonite sand" from Sandy Cay in the northwestern Bahamas.

Oceanus International's website, up until April 25, stated: "We have concessions and permits to extract aragonite sand from Sandy Cay in The Bahamas. We can fill a hopper boat to ship and export to any port in the world. This is ideal for beach recovery projects and artificial beaches."

This material has now been removed by the company, which describes itself as a specialist in beach restoration and nourishment, after Chester Cooper, the opposition's deputy leader, questioned its presence in The Bahamas and whether it had actually obtained the necessary government approvals.

Oceanus's purported plans for Sandy Cay, which lies off the western tip of Grand Bahama, have been exposed at a time when debate over this nations's national resources, their potential value in a post-COVID-19 world, and the need to ensure the Bahamian people are the prime beneficiaries of their exploitation, is gathering momentum.

Mr Cooper said the material on Oceanus' website is "particularly interesting given that the government anticipates the Department of Lands and Surveys will collect a total of only $22 from aragonite mining this budget cycle". The Exuma MP asked why an international company was marketing the sale of a Bahamian natural resource given such low revenue projections for the 2019-2020 fiscal year.

He called on the Prime Minister, given that he is responsible for the Department of Lands and Surveys, to confirm whether or not Oceanus is authorised to mine aragonite in The Bahamas and when it was granted a permit to dredge.

Mr Cooper is also asking if Oceanus is sub-contracted to dredge in The Bahamas; what it had paid for its permits; and how much revenue will be generated for the government.

"In 2018, the minister of the environment announced that Cabinet was reviewing a report on the value of aragonite and the requisite mitigation of the effects of mining, and that a report would be made to Parliament," Mr Cooper said, asking for a copy.

Tribune Business that the aragonite mining licence for Sandy Cay has been assigned to the Sandy Cay Development Company, which is owned by Anthony Myers, a Bahamian. Government sources yesterday said they had never heard of Oceanus International, and suggested it had neither been granted the necessary permits nor hired as a sub-contractor by anyone else.