BOB ‘boggles mind’ with 46% bad loans
More than 46 per cent of Bank of the Bahamas’ $510 million loan portfolio is now impaired, with ‘bad’ credit extended to business customers exceeding the sum that remains current.
‘Put money where mouth is’ on $70m mobile offering
Some institutional investors are seeking extra time to make a “maximum investment” in the new mobile operator’s majority shareholder, with the process at the “put your money where your mouth is” stage.
Hutchison slammed for ‘pocketing tax breaks’ as Freeport hotels sink
Grand Bahama’s largest investor was yesterday slammed for failing to properly kick-start repairs to the island’s storm-ravaged tourism product, despite pocketing millions of dollars in tax concessions from the Government.
NHI manager: 70% of physicians agree to scheme’s terms
The National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme’s project manager yesterday said almost 70 per cent of physicians who attended last week’s briefing sessions had indicated they would accept its proposed fee structure and sign-up as care providers.
Businessman blasts web shop ‘scourge’
A Long Island businessman has slammed web shops as a “scourge” that is “drying up” the island’s economy, with residents prioritising gambling above everything else.
No GB electricity rate rise for five years
Grand Bahama residents and businesses will see no increase in their electricity rates “for the next five years”, after the island’s utility agreed to absorb Hurricane Matthew’s $27.5 million restoration costs itself.
IMF: Deficit double Govt’s own forecast
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday said the fiscal deficit for year to end-June 2016 was twice what the Christie administration had projected, and urged it to make “more determined efforts to rationalise spending”.
Baha Mar owner forms ‘new entity’ to operate casino
Baha Mar’s new owner yesterday said it is forming its own company to operate the project’s casino, and does not seen gaming junkets as “a critical market for us”.
Consumers ripped off at 50% of gas pumps
Bahamian consumers are being short-changed at 50 per cent of gasoline station pumps, a regulator revealed yesterday.
Baha Mar acquirer slams as ‘baseless’ claim it’s unsuitable
Baha Mar’s new owner yesterday slammed efforts to link it to Chinese organised crime gangs as “baseless, unfounded and untrue”, reiterating its commitment to the “highest integrity” wherever it operated.
BPL can ‘undervalue’ price consumers get for renewable energy
Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) will initially be allowed to “undervalue” the price it pays to purchase renewable energy generated by its residential customers, according to proposals released yesterday.
Residential renewables can grid-tie in early ‘17
Bahamas Power & Light’s (BPL) residential consumers should be able to install grid-tied renewable energy systems by the end of January 2017, the Utilities Regulation & Competition Authority’s (URCA) top executive said yesterday.
Provider: 20-30 MW in renewable energy awaiting regulations
A renewable energy provider yesterday said it is eagerly awaiting implementation of regulations governing the sector, as it has 20-30 Mega Watts (MW) worth of contracts waiting to be built.
Baha Mar owner ‘very confident’ on opening deadlines
Baha Mar’s new owner yesterday pledged that it would be “a great caretaker” for the project, and said it was “very confident” it would meet the April 2017 opening deadline.
Baha Mar deal’s ‘open governance’ conflict
The continued secrecy surrounding the Baha Mar deal is “in direct conflict” with demands for more open and accountable governance, a leading reform campaigner said yesterday.
