The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The $200m Rosewood Exuma developer and its leading opponent yesterday renewed battle over Monday’s delivery of construction-related materials and equipment to the project site on Sampson Cay.

Turtlegrass Resort and Island Club, which will be the development’s immediate neighbour, used the equipment’s arrival - by barge transportation - to press its case for a Supreme Court injunction that would block Miami-based Yntegra Group from undertaking any construction activity while its Judicial Review challenge seeking to overturn the project’s environmental approvals remains live before the courts.

But, while Jeffrey Clark, Turtlegrass’ chief financial officer, alleged that Monday’s equipment arrival was “consistent with ongoing works” even though Yntegra has not received preliminary site plan approval from the Town Planning Committee, the Rosewood Exuma developer asserted that the materials are “simply being stored” on Sampson Cay and “no activity is being conducted” prior to the Supreme Court’s decision on whether an injunction should be granted.

Seemingly anticipating Turtlegrass’s complaint, Nicholas MacLean, head of operations for Yntegra Capital and its Sampson Cay Bahamas project vehicle, asserted in a Supreme Court affidavit: “On Monday, March 16, 2026, Sampson Cay Bahamas delivered equipment to its property at Sampson Cay. The delivery included a water truck, pipes, tools, fertilizer, a greenhouse, a generator, equipment service kits for the maintenance of equipment, maritime and other general supplies.

“The equipment delivered to Sampson Cay today will be necessary to conduct the geotechnical investigations and studies to which the Developers have referred to in previous affidavits. This equipment will also be necessary for the construction of a nursery, in the future, for the preservation of protected plants, as required by our Certificates of Environmental Clearance (CEC).

“For the avoidance of any doubt, the equipment and materials delivered at Sampson Cay today are simply being stored on site at this time and no activity is being conducted, pending the determination of the outstanding application for injunctive relief,” Mr MacLean added.

“To assist in the storing of the equipment, the developer has used a transition barge. This barge is a floating platform designed to serve as a reliable solution for transporting equipment to and from Sampson Cay.

“While the equipment was being stored today, an environmental monitor was present to record the activities performed by the developers and any potential impact that the offloading activity may have had on the environment. A copy of that environmental monitor’s report will be produced after the activity has been completed,” he continued.

“The developer is confident that the report by the environmental monitor will confirm that there has been no negative impact on the environment during the offloading process described above.” Mr MacLean said he swore the affidavit “in good faith” as a means to reassure the Supreme Court “that his activity does not constitute development within the meaning of the Planning and Subdivision Act, and that the activity will not cause any negative impact, much less irreversible and/or catastrophic damage, to the environment”.

Mr Clark and Turtlegrass, though, are far from convinced and even unleashed drones to monitor what was happening after being made aware that Yntegra’s barge had arrived off Sampson Cay in the Exumas. “Today, Monday, March 16,I received a series of videos and photographs from David Hocher, owner and operator of Staniel Cay Yacht Club, via WhatsApp indicating that there was activity occurring on East Sampson Cay,” Mr Clark alleged in a March 17, 2026, affidavit.

“I requested that members of the Turtlegrass team launch drones to monitor activity. The team members observed and sent to me recordings of a large barge being towed by the US-flagged tug that landed on the southernmost portion of East Sampson Cay.”

Mr Clark admitted he did not personally observe this, but added that the barge was being towed by the US-flagged tug boat, Megan Beyel. “In one video, the barge remains stationary for an extended period and, based on the visible waterline and the timing of the footage, it appears to be waiting for the tide to rise before approaching closer to the shoreline,” he added.

“The barge was eventually grounded on the shoreline on the southernmost part of East Sampson Cay, the same location as prior offloading activity, and was unloaded using heavy equipment throughout the afternoon. I did not personally observe this: I am only describing what I saw in the videos. The materials offloaded from the barge appear to include construction materials and equipment.

“These include what appear to be two septic tanks, a water tanker and multiple sacks of concrete/aggregate materials.” Mr Clark asserted that this was “activity consistent with ongoing works”, but this was vehemently denied by Yntegra. The Turtlegrass financial chief said the resort was providing evidence during the period when the Supreme Court’s decision on imposing an injunction on the Rosewood Exuma project’s construction remains pending.

The Rosewood Exuma development spans 131.2 acres and is set to include 33 hotel units, 40 residential cottages, and over 100 buildings, accommodating up to 460 guests with 150 employee housing units.

A revised Heads of Agreement for the project was signed with the Government on May 21, 2024, and its certificate of environmental clearance (CEC) was granted on June 23, 2025. Geotechnical works were said to have been “extended until June 30, 2026”, with temporary housing and maintenance works approved to start on June 5 last year. Civil works design approvals for paving, grading and maintenance have also been obtained. Despite these approvals, the service dock’s location remains a central concern.