IMF slashes Bahamas 2016 growth to 1.5%
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed its 2016 growth forecast for the Bahamas by a further 0.7 percentage points to just 1.5 per cent, due to the Baha Mar impasse.
Ex-minister pledges to battle $2.57m reversal
An ex-Cabinet minister has pledged "to fight on principle" a $2.57 million damages award against himself and his law firm, which the Court of Appeal last week backed as enforceable.
Freeport losing investment since climate 'up in the air'
Freeport's largest investor has confirmed that nine-figure investments have been delayed because the Government has left the city's expiring tax incentives "up in the air".
GB Power: $28m damage from Joaquin-type storm
A Joaquin-style hurricane would likely impose $28 million worth of repair costs on Grand Bahama Power Company (GBPC), with its top executive defending the ‘storm insurance’ charge it plans to levy on customer bills.
Franchise group hits ‘underserved’ chicken market
Aetos Holdings yesterday said it was targeting an “underserved chicken market” with its third fast food franchise, and expressed optimism that its latest global brand will “more than exceed” their financial goals.
QC: Is Gov’t admitting ‘fiscal irresponsibility’?
An outspoken QC yesterday questioned whether the Government has confessed to “fiscal irresponsibility and negligence”, after a Cabinet minister asserted that revenues collected from Freeport are insufficient to meet public expenditures in the city.
BIA chairman: NHI costing impossible
The Bahamas Insurance Association’s (BIA) chairman yesterday said it was impossible for the Government to currently develop an accurate cost for its National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme because it possesses none of the necessary data.
Doctors may ‘cut own throat’ over NHI model offer
A well-known physician yesterday suggested primary care doctors may “cut their own throat” if they sign up to the preferred National Health Insurance (NHI) model, as he questioned whether the Government’s numbers “make sense” for the Bahamas.
Gov’t ‘not bound’ to 2030 energy targets
The Government is not ‘bound’ to its National Energy Policy target of 30 per cent of electricity being produced from renewables by 2030, with the Deputy Prime Minister acknowledging: “That’s not soon enough”.
Bahamas at ‘critical point in evolution’
The Bahamas has not been living up to its full potential and now faces a “critical point” in its evolution, the Minister of State for Investments believes.
PHA solvency gap up 54% in last accounts
The Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) is almost two years late in signing off on its audited financial statements, Tribune Business can reveal, and was running a $73.179 million accumulated deficit at year-end 2013.
GB Power raises reduced light bill estimate to 95%
Grand Bahama Power Company (GBPC) yesterday said it was “confident” that the number of residential customers set to experience reduced electricity bills in 2016 had increased to 95 per cent, with some in line for “close to 7 per cent” decreases.
$250m Container Port expansion hinges on incentive certainty
Hutchison Whampoa wants “certainty” that Freeport’s expiring investment incentives will be extended before committing to the $250 million Container Port expansion and other potential projects, it was revealed yesterday.
Gov’t willing to go beyond $20m on BEC clean-up
The Deputy Prime Minister yesterday suggested that the Government will allocate more than $20 million to tackle the Bahamas Electricity Corporation’s (BEC) legacy pollution if necessary.
DPM targets BEC deal by year’s end
PowerSecure’s management agreement to take over operations at the ‘new BEC’ could be signed before year’s end, the Deputy Prime Minister said yesterday, adding that a “correction” to the renewable energy self-generation programme suspension was imminent.
