The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Staff Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

NEGOTIATIONS with Baha Mar over costing for the reconfiguration of West Bay Street could be finalised by the end of the month, Deputy Prime Minister, Philip Davis, said yesterday.

The government’s technical team is expected to present its final report tomorrow after more than six months of negotiations with the resort, according to Mr Davis, who remained tight-lipped over whether or not costs exceeded initial pay out expectations.

Mr Davis, also Minister of Works, said: “Baha Mar provided us with documentation with respect to the road works, including payment certificates, which will help us in our evaluation. This is happening by our technical team, and I expect a report by [tomorrow]. Then, we will sit down with [Baha Mar].”

The government is obligated to pay $47.8 million to Baha Mar if the cost of the reconfiguration of West Bay Street exceeded $70 million, according to Mr Davis, who said if the figure is less than $70 million the government would only be obligated to pay 50 per cent.

According to government technical experts earlier this year, the value of the Baha Mar roadwork was reportedly assessed at around

$58 million.

According to officials, the efforts to revisit the Baha Mar deal stemmed from questions regarding the cost per mile for the West Bay Street roadworks when compared to the costs of the Airport Gateway Project.

Mr Davis said a key area of discussion with Baha Mar was the government’s entitlement to determine the appropriate amount to spend. He pointed to the differences between the 2005 and 2011 agreement regarding the matter.

In June, Mr Davis told The Tribune that the infrastructure costs associated with Baha Mar could be lower than expected, and the government may not have to pay the full amount.

At that time, Mr Davis said technical teams were expected to conclude negotiations with the resort over costing before the end of the month.

Less than two months later in an interview with Tribune Business, Baha Mar executives said the Government had “no right” to “exclude, discount or modify” any of the infrastructure cost included in the company’s determination.

Telling Tribune Business that they anticipated the Government would honour its Heads of Agreement, Uri Clinton, Senior Vice-President and General Counsel at Baha Mar, said all infrastructure costs associated with the reconfiguration and construction of West Bay Street had already been anticipated under the protocol in the Heads of Agreement and that the HOA gave Baha Mar the authority to make a determination on costs.

Former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham also warned that the government’s “tedious, vexatious” efforts to revisit the deal may cause “unimaginable” harm to the Bahamas.

He said the government’s commitment to pay more than $45 million for infrastructural work was part of the initial agreement signed in 2005 – during the first Christie-led government.

Mr Ingraham said he was “saddened to see the good name of the Bahamas as a trustworthy and transparent jurisdiction in which to conduct business” threatened by an attempt to delay meeting a valid financial obligation.

Responding to Mr Ingraham’s warning, Prime Minister Perry Christie said Mr Ingraham did not need to apologise because the government and Baha Mar were partners and would work it out “quickly”.