The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

Grand Bahama still has a “long way to go” towards economic recovery, the FNM’s deputy leader has acknowledged, as he slammed the Government for “dragging its feet” on the Grand Celebration cruise line negotiations.

K P Turnquest said: “From an economic standpoint, the island has a long way to go, certainly. The Container Port continues to face some challenges, and that is a significant asset in our arsenal that we sell to the world as an investment incentive. It is also a source of pride for us.

“We are hopeful they will sort out their challenges in short order. The hotel [Grand Lucayan] is similarly facing its challenges, and hopefully they will be able to sort out their issues and get back into operation as quickly as possible.

“The casino is now closed, and that left a serious void in terms of employment but also the amenities that help to attract visitors to the island.”

Mr Turnquest added: “We have challenges on the economic side, and the Grand Celebration is a part of the issues that we face that needs to be addressed.

“Hopefully, whatever the issues are with respect to that will be resolved quickly. The Government seems to have been dragging its feet on this, which is very unfortunate, but hopefully they will give it the urgent attention it deserves and we can get that pillar in our tourism product back in place and start to drive the visitors back to the island.”

Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, the Grand Celebration’s owner and operator, is in negotiations with the Government via the Ministry of Tourism, seeking to assign its current arrangement - along with a two-year extension - to the proposed buyer of the cruise ship. The vessel brings roughly 280,000 passengers to Grand Bahama per year.

Despite some $27.5 million in power restoration costs post-Hurricane Matthew, the Grand Bahama Port Authority’s vice-chairman, Sarah St George, recently announced there will be no electricity rate increase to consumers in Grand Bahama.

“That’s a change from what they had said initially. I’m very excited and happy to hear that they have decided to spare the consumer that additional burden, and the certainly will go a long way to building goodwill with the community,” said Mr Turnquest.

“In terms of the electricity restoration, there has never been any doubt that GB Power had done a fantastic job in terms of getting electricity back up and running for residents in a very short period of time considering the damage that was done.

“There remains challenges in areas where the buildings themselves have a challenge, and power cannot be connected, but overall they have done a very good job in terms of getting the island back up and going.”