Doubts over PLP electricity deal

Deputy Prime Minister K Peter Turnquest.

As of Wednesday, May 17, 2017

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Deputy Chief Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

A DAY after former Prime Minister Perry Christie revealed his administration had signed off on agreements with a company to make electricity more affordable and reliable while at the same time generating significant revenue for the government days ahead of the general election, Deputy Prime Minister K Peter Turnquest and a top union official have expressed uncertainty over whether this deal is concrete.

Speaking to The Tribune yesterday, Bahamas Electrical Workers Union (BEWU) President Paul Maynard said while he did hear of an agreement, it was not officially brought to the attention of the union.

Mr Maynard said in his view, this would mean that the deal “is not happening”.

If this is the case, he told the new administration “to scrap, tear up (and) throw in the garbage” anything that might exist.

Meanwhile Mr Turnquest said the former prime minister needed to come forward and shed light on the revelation he made at the Progressive Liberal Party’s headquarters on Monday night.

He added that he did not want to say much more as not to preempt anything coming forward on this matter in the future, but said in his preliminary talks with one of the groups interested in power generation for Bahamas Power and Light Ltd (BPL), it was speculated that there was no deal.

For his part, Mr Maynard said: “If the union was not involved and if the union doesn’t support it, it won’t happen.

“(There is) no way the union will allow no company to come here and have Bahamians not working. This same company went in Jamaica and they brought their own people to work. It’s not happening here. We are not allowing that.

“If you get a company and they involved us in a process then it’s fine, I have no problem supporting the government if the union knows about the deal from the start and they will take care of the workers.”

He continued: “I heard about the deal, but we were not involved so it’s not happening. You can take that to the bank.”

Mr Christie’s remarks on Monday night came a week after Tribune Business revealed that the Christie administration had quietly been soliciting bids to provide BPL with improved generation capacity, reportedly without the knowledge of either the company itself or its manager, PowerSecure.

Mr Christie referred to the matter as he gave a lengthy resignation speech as PLP leader at a National General Council meeting.

He said it was up to the new government to review the proposals and decide if it wanted to go forward with it. He also assigned former Minister of Works Philip “Brave” Davis and former Minister of the Environment Kenred Dorsett the job of explaining the details of the proposals to the public.

“I want Brave Davis and Ken Dorsett to speak (to the fact that) in the last remaining weeks of my government we made an incredible breakthrough in the provision of electricity and the agreements were approved by Cabinet like four or five days before the election,” Mr Christie told PLP supporters packed into the Sir Lynden Pindling Centre.

“It was incredible insofar as it was the use of natural gas, that it would make electricity much more affordable, more reliable. A part of it was to pay off the $700m rate reduction bond. A company that was going to broaden its involvement in establishing in Freeport and New Providence facilities that would enable the government to earn substantial revenues from. As (I) indicated to Brave Davis today (Monday), he has a responsibility to speak to it because the country will benefit from it substantially. It is an extraordinary set of agreements and the country should know who did it as efforts will be made now by our successors to in fact review the agreements and make a decision as to whether or not they would proceed with it,” Mr Christie said.

Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 11 months ago

I smell a Snake behind Christie's proposed electricity deal....and we all know who and what that means!!!

EasternGate 6 years, 11 months ago

I believe, I believe

MassExodus 6 years, 11 months ago

The saying Well_reality_sic is "I smell a rat" ...

Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 11 months ago

Sir Snake has been called worse things, but "rat" is fine by me too.

TalRussell 6 years, 11 months ago

Comrade MOF KP, does you mean be serious, or just forgetful........ (There is no way the union will allow no company to come here and have Bahamalanders not working. This same company went in Jamaica and they brought their own people to work. It’s not happening here. We are not allowing that).
There were those 8100 work permits Papa Hubert and his DPM, signed for Chinese workers. Good God, minister - they even constructed a foreigners village - complete with housing for thousands, medical clinic and stores - out at "Izmirlian's" Baha Mar?????
Sounded to many us natives - likes Baha Mar - brought their own people??? Okay, I know you want people think the Papa Hubert and Brent era is over.... but these two are back in full regal influence colours !!!!!!!! And, them two sponsored some well known red retreads into cabinet on May 10, 2017.

MassExodus 6 years, 11 months ago

Tal HAI is not PM anymore. This is a completely different administration. There is no story here, except that the Prime Minister came on stage and LIED once again! There was NO DEAL in place. That means he is a LIAR. As we have said before Perry and the PLP CARRY YA ASS

TalRussell 6 years, 11 months ago

Comrade MassExodus, why bring up former PM Christie cause he is old news. What we now need to turn our attention to is working as a united bloggers team to prevent some around Minnis from delivery the fatal poison pill that the former Long Island red MP Reheasa - failed to deliver. The first 12 months will be Minnis biggest test. His former enemy Reheasa is on the outside looking in.....Minnis's newest enemies are seated at his cabinet table.

banker 6 years, 11 months ago

Throw a rock and then say "We must all stop trowing rocks". Deceitful and hypocritical. Your true colours are showing.

Reality_Check 6 years, 11 months ago

Forget the BEC deal. When it come to ethical conduct considerations Minnis really needs to wash his mouth out with soap. In talking about firing cabinet ministers and permanent secretaries and others if they engage in unethical activities of any kind, Minnis is talking out both sides of his mouth. If he was truly concerned about unethical behavior he would be equally concerned about the very appearance of unethical behavior. But yet we see him appointing Brent Symonette as Minister Of Financial Services, Trade and Industry. This is absolutely a terrific situation for Brent given his interest in Commonwealth Bank, the shipping ports, and the mining of aragonite from our seabed. Minnis made a terrible mistake in taking 'quid pro quo' money from the Symonette family to finance the FNM's 2017 general election campaign and we, the Bahamian people at large, are going to pay a dear price for it by a continuing increase in the divide between the haves and the have nots! Brent's ministerial portfolio not only makes him one of the most powerful cabinet ministers from an economic standpoint, but also the most conflicted cabinet minister!

MassExodus 6 years, 11 months ago

Well_Mudda_Reality Brent Symonette hasn't made a single deal yet. So how could he be speaking out of 2 sides of his mouth? Brent Symonette would have to have done something, say a conflict of interest or let's call it pulled a Fitzgerald! Do you have any proof that has done anything since Sunday when he was appointed Minister? We are all interested to hear your findings...

proudloudandfnm 6 years, 11 months ago

If Perry made the deal it can only be bad...

thephoenix562 6 years, 11 months ago

PLP DEAL enough said.

truetruebahamian 6 years, 11 months ago

Reality_check - Brent has little to nothing to do with Ocean Cay or Bahama Hot Mix. My wife's former and present family has controlling interest and work them both, the first is uneventful because aragonite is plentiful both sides of the Gulf Stream and so many places elsewhere - also nothing can be shipped to the U.S. unless it is in a U.S. registered vessel, so most prospects are pretty lean - also regarding BHM, she and her ex-husband started and continued BHM. She would load the furnaces at night with skid steer equipment and started to employ Bahamian labour as it grew. So there you go - sorry to burst two imaginary bubbles!

Reality_Check 6 years, 11 months ago

I didn't say anything about Bahamas Hot Mix, but the two bigger conflicts of interest from an appearance standpoint are the port run by APD Limited, assuming certain of his Trade portfolio duties involve the Arawak Cay Port, and Commonwealth Bank Ltd which lands four square within his Financial Services portfolio. Shipping and Trade certainly go very much hand in hand and the Symonette family has significant business interests involving our main port and shipping.

DonAnthony 6 years, 11 months ago

The port has a regulated profit margin of 10% for the next 30 odd years. Hard to see any conflict there.

Well_mudda_take_sic 6 years, 11 months ago

And wouldn't we all like to receive a minimum10% return on our investment, guaranteed by the vast majority of the poor consumers in a country that must import just about everything through a cartel controlled port???!!! The super wealthy pirates like the Symonette family, the Mosko family, and a half dozen other crooked Bahamian families who are the benefactors of the very very lucrative oligopoly in shipping & port business activities that was given to them by the corrupt Ingraham administration says it all as far as I'm concerned. These arsehole greedy families have been driving up our cost of living in the Bahamas so they can make the minimum 10% p.a. guaranteed rate of return on their money that was given to them for financing Ingraham's 2007 and 2012 election campaigns!

ohdrap4 6 years, 11 months ago

speaking of energy deals, does anyone remember the potcake signed on for a 1% loan for cheape fuel from venezuela?

i am sure the headlines can still be found online.

where is venezuela now?

paul_vincent_zecchino 6 years, 11 months ago

In the outhouse basement.

banker 6 years, 11 months ago

Petro Caribe. I remember that. At the time, Potcake was being advised by an ex-banker who turned out to be a tief, and they were all for signing on. A year ago, I saw this ex-banker (who still calls himself a financial adviser to Potcake) on the street downtown, and he was still carrying a portfolio with "PetroCaribe" emblazoned on it.

All that we had to do to join Petro Caribe, was to kick out all of the other oil companies, and give all of our business exclusively to Venezuela. We would get cheap oil, we wouldn't have to pay for it immediately and oh ... by the way ... we sign over our energy sovereignty to that the nutbar Chavez who was alive at the time. Him dying horribly of cancer was another hint that there may be a god.

The_Oracle 6 years, 11 months ago

Short on Toilet paper, and rioting in the streets. LNG can play a role in future energy needs, ALONGSIDE alternate energy. Policy aught to allow residential, commercial and industrial, under the current electrical code, which outlines its integration. The "two meter" deal proposed by BEC is garbage and is designed to add cost, frustrate, and stall. Digital meters are programmable to allow or dis-allow grid tied Solar. Let it Rip! (by qualified entities)

banker 6 years, 11 months ago

Co-sign. Agree entirely.

However there will be exploiters. I remember the solar company started by Lincoln Bain and Graham Weatherford. They patched together a system from solar panels and inappropriate automotive parts and were selling it as a complete solution instead of a BEC hookup. If I recall correctly, Weatherford swing Bain by overstating performance. Bain was the money behind it, and it all came crashing down when their system wouldn't work as advertised.

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