The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie said on Friday that he was “impressed” with the names of the many investors who are in talks with the Export Import Bank of China over the $3.5bn Baha Mar resort.

Mr Christie said while the government waits to see what will take place he has some very clear concerns over how soon the construction will begin and that Bahamian contractors who are owed significant sums of money are paid on a “dollar per dollar basis”.

He added that the government also hopes to have those who were made redundant re-hired when the resort opens.

While he declined to say on the record when he hoped the construction will begin, Mr Christie said he ultimately just wants work to start as quickly as possible.

“I met with the receiver managers and the provisional liquidators yesterday evening to discuss this matter,” Mr Christie said after making remarks at the third annual National Data Protection Symposium.

“I indicated to them I had written a very comprehensive letter to the China Export Import Bank. I am advised that this morning I have a reply. I am going into the office now to receive that reply but the important point is this they were to put out a statement to the effect that they are talking to many persons including (Sir) Sol Kerzner’s group. They are talking to people who can bring great excitement to this destination.

“I am very impressed with the names of the operations (and) the names of the individuals who are talking with them and they include also huge Chinese operators.”

He continued: “So again my concern has been very clear. One, that construction resumes as quickly as possible (and) I impressed that upon them yesterday. Two, that there is no compromise on paying the Bahamian contractors who are owed significant sums of money on a dollar per dollar basis (and) three on the employment I offered to them.

"If we are able to be certain when construction resumes the government of the Bahamas, on the basis that we would be able to be reimbursed in part or in whole, would then move to be able to cause the people who are unemployed to be employed.”

On Monday, The Tribune reported that a deal in principal had been struck for the stalled Cable Beach resort between Island Capital Group LLC, a private real estate merchant bank led by Andrew Farkas and partnered by hotel magnate Sol Kerzner, the China Export-Import Bank and China State Construction Engineering Corporation Ltd.

The Tribune understands that representatives from Island Capital Group have been in Beijing working out the details of the agreement, which is awaiting final approval. The final aim is reportedly to analyse the debts, contracts and other financing needs in a bid to make the resort ready for its long-delayed grand opening over the next six to nine months.

This will ultimately lead to the two billionaire investors being exclusively responsible for the restructuring, financing, completion, opening and operating of the beleaguered $3.5 billion resort on Cable Beach, The Tribune understands.

Baha Mar filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a US Bankruptcy Court for 15 of its companies on June 29.

However, in September, a US judge threw out the Chapter 11 cases for Baha Mar’s Bahamian companies.

On September 4, Edmund Rahming of KRyS Global, Mark Nicholas Cropper and Alastair Beveridge of AlixPartners Services UK were appointed as joint provisional liquidators and given the task of overseeing the company. In October, they received approval from the Supreme Court to make 2,020 Baha Mar employees redundant due to the resort’s insolvency.

On October 30, the Export Import Bank of China, Baha Mar’s secured creditor via its $2.45 billion mortgage debenture, obtained Supreme Court approval to appoint the Deloitte & Touche accounting firm as receivers for the troubled project.

Raymond Winder, the firm’s Bahamas managing partner, and two colleagues from Deloitte’s Beijing office, have been selected as receivers for the mega resort.

The resort was originally scheduled to open in December 2014.