The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Government, likely with eyes on the constituency’s upcoming by-election, yesterday signed a deal for a private consortium to transform Bimini’s airport facilities.

Dr Kenneth Romer, director of aviation and the Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation’s deputy director-general, confirmed to Tribune Business that a private-public partnership (PPP) deal has been signed with the Bimini Airport Development Partners group.

Tribune Business reported back in August that the group’s members include Phoenix Infrastructure, a US-based infrastructure advisory and investment firm with offices in Washington D.C and New York; Plenary Group, another US infrastructure group; and an airport and fixed-base FBO operator called Avports.

A presentation seen by this newspaper described Phoenix Infrastructure as a “black-owned infrastructure investor and developer with experience in airport development and economic impact within its projects”. Its website shows air transportation and airport operators (FBOs) are among its specialist areas of interest. It was founded in 2015 by two University of Chicago Business School colleagues, Jeremy Ebie and Chris Baeza.

Plenary was said to be a “best-in-class” long-term infrastructure investor and developer with projects across the US, Canada and the Caribbean”. Its website describes it as “one of the world’s leading investors, developers and asset managers of public infrastructure projects” or PPPs, numbering 59, and it is owned by an institutional investor, CDPQ, with more than $300bn in assets under management. It focuses heavily on hospitals, bridges and other public sector facilities.

Avports, meanwhile, was described as a “best-in-class airport operator with a focus on small to mid-sized airport facilities across the US, Latin America and the Caribbean”. Headquartered at Dulles Airport in Dallas, it is involved at multiple US airports in locations such as Los Angeles, Detroit, St Louis and Westchester.

The PPP deal will likely require Bimini Airport Development Partners to redevelop the existing airport, overseeing any necessary construction activity while providing and arranging all the capital financing. The group will also then manage and operate the airport for fixed term, likely 20-30 years, levying a variety of user fees and charges to recover its investment, pay-off financiers and generate a profit.

Dr Romer confirmed to this newspaper at the time that there have been “active discussions” over the Government partnering with private investors, infrastructure developers and airport operators for the management and operation of Bimini’s main aviation gateway.

Confirming that Bimini was not among the 14 Family Island airports in the $263m-strong package put out to bid via a public Request for Proposal (RFP), he added: “The development of airports is an ongoing process. As you know, there were airports targeted specifically, the 14 for PPPs.

“Bimini was not part of the 14 airport PPPs but, outside of that, there were some airports targeted for development. I do know there were active discussions in terms of development. Dr Romer said suggestions that Resorts World Bimini, operator of the island’s largest resort property, was involved in the PPP group are incorrect, adding that “they are not listed as an active developer in the airport process.

“Resorts World is not the proposed developer for that south Bimini airport. Resorts World is not targeted to be the developer of that airport,” Dr Romer added. Phoenix Infrastructure provides the common link for, in 2021, it was named as the entity providing the financing for Genting and RAV, the Resorts World Bimini owners, to take over management and operations of Bimini’s airport.

Algernon Cargill, the then-director of aviation, told this newspaper at that time: “We’re very excited about it. This will be a PPP with that group that is similar to other PPPs. The plans are already in the preliminary stage.

“They’re looking at lengthening the runway and building a brand new terminal. We’re being very deliberate in our discussions to ensure we have take a well-developed proposal before we submit it to Cabinet for approval. They’ll be the managing partner for the airport, Genting and RAV Bahamas. It’s something we’ve been planning for a couple of months. We’ve had several meetings, but contracts have not been executed.”

The plans in 2021 involved extending the runway from its present 6,000 feet to 8,000 feet, so that it can easily accommodate commercial passenger aircraft as well as private jets. The total investment being eyed was said to be $40m.