02182019 BUSINESS

business@tribunemedia.net

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2019

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ALFRED SEARS QC

Island Luck ‘back to business’; deal may trouble rivals

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net ISLAND Luck’s attorney says his client plans to “get back to business” following the tax settlement with the government, while conceding the deal “may create a problem” for other web shops.

Alfred Sears QC, who represented Sebas Bastian’s chain in the legal action and subsequent negotiations, said the eight month stand-off between the industry and the Minnis administration had exposed the need for “a more practical approach” to tax reforms.

He told Tribune Business that such changes needed to strike a balance between “the needs of the state” and ensuring affected industries remained “sustainable”, and be fair, “proportionate and progressive” for all parties.

SEE PAGE 4

THE Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) line staff union is warning that worker “anxiety” is increasing as it blasted the government’s “hands-off approach”.

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Banks unmoved over gaming ‘myth debunk’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

T

HE Gaming Board’s “myth debunking” has not convinced commercial banks to accept web shop monies, the Clearing Banks Association’s (CBA) chairman has revealed.

Gowon Bowe told Tribune Business that the regulator’s research, arguing that concerns over domestic gaming’s vulnerability to money laundering and other financial crimes were “unfounded”, failed to address “several issues” fundamental to the banks’ reluctance to accept the industry’s deposits.

Top among them, he explained, was the “elevated risk” involved in dealing with the large amounts of cash generated by web shops and the extra compliance/due diligence costs that banks will incur in handling such sums.

While the Gaming Board study only focused

Union blasts govt as BTC ‘anxiety’ grows

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

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Dino Rolle, the Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union’s (BCPOU) president, told Tribune Business that itself and the BTC management union had “heard squat” from the Minnis administration since the meetings

SEE PAGE 9

• Key ‘issues’ not addressed by Gaming Board • Web shops ‘elevated risk’ as high cash sector • Bahamian bank ‘survival’ could be endangered

GOWON BOWE on the size of web shop patrons’ account balances and average transactions, Mr Bowe said banks were not faced with individual customer deposits but an “aggregation” of these sums by the gaming houses.

He explained that the costs involved in dealing with large cash sums often exceeded the potential earnings from accepting them, creating an unfavourable

risk/reward situation for the banks - especially since web shops are the largest source of cash transactions.

Refuting claims that Bahamian commercial banks were “discriminating” against the web shops, the Clearing Banks Association (CBA) chief said other cash-based businesses also experienced “significant issues” in opening accounts and dealing with financial institutions because of the higher risk involved.

Mr Bowe then added that another obstacle to Bahamian banks accepting web shop deposits remained the correspondent banking links that the industry - and, indeed, entire economy - depends upon for its “survival”.

Most of The Bahamas’ correspondent banking relationships are with North American institutions, he

$4.24 Landfill manager eyes $20m raise

KENWOOD KERR

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

said, which largely frown upon the acceptance of monies generated by online gaming and other varieties of gambling.

Mr Bowe explained that taking web shops deposits would thus likely endanger these relationships and, in so doing, jeopardise an economy that relies on such links to conduct commerce and settle transactions with clients and suppliers in overseas countries. Without such ties, The Bahamas’ “wheels of commerce” would grind to a halt.

The Gaming Board’s study has been seized upon by the web shop industry and its supporters, including Obie Wilchcombe, former minister responsible for gaming, and accountant Philip Galanis, to re-open the long-standing argument

THE New Providence landfill’s incoming manager has moved “in earnest” to close the initial $20m financing it requires with the ink barely dry on its deal with the government.

Kenwood Kerr, principal of Providence Advisors, told Tribune Business that the 100 percent Bahamianowned group was seeking to rapidly “cement” previous money pledges by investors now that the ten-year agreement was sealed.

Targeted at institutional and “accredited” investors, Mr Kerr said he and the Waste Resources Development Group (WRDG), the group of Bahamian waste services providers who teamed with Providence Advisors to be selected as the landfill’s new manager, were optimistic that the capital raising will be fully subscribed.

SEE PAGE 6

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PAGE 2, Monday, February 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

TAXING TIMES FOR FAR-FLUNG FAMILY ISLANDS particular area known for higher unemployment and propose s RODERICK Simm that VAT remain x‘ta at writes th only at 7.5 percent, ld free zones’ shou then the revenue forto ed er id be cons feited would have in stimulate growth to be found elsee Th of rts remote pa where.

With no Bahamas economic growth, and opportunities for such arising at a stagnant pace, the next best thing to do would be to borrow these funds. It is fair to say that the weighted average of the population in the southern islands compared to the entire Bahamas would be minimal. Therefore, the removal of taxes from these areas would not be burdensome to the government because VAT is equally distributed across those islands where economic activity is better and the population size is larger.

By RODERICK A SIMMS II

Advocate for sustainable Family Island growth and development | rasii@me.com THE Bahamian government’s move to increase value-added tax (VAT) last year will have an adverse impact on southern Family Islands and, by extension, all Out Islands. Therefore, the government should consider making these islands economic “tax-free zones”.

While the 4.5 percentage point increase will impact consumers across all islands, the brunt will be felt by those living in the southern Family Islands - particularly those that have yet to fully recover from major hurricanes that severely impacted them between 2015 to 2017.

CONSIDER THIS The price of goods and services is higher on Family Islands for a number of reasons, one being the extra transportation costs.

Therefore, goods being shipped and sold to Family Island business owners are still subject to price increases despite the reduction or elimination of duty on certain items. An increase in taxes will not improve this situation. The

nature of VAT encompasses the theory of horizontal equitym where all consumers pay the same amount of taxes despite variances in income. But given the need for the country to achieve economic growth, is it a wise idea to apply the same level of taxation to those in the southern islands? The economies of these islands were already worse off compared to those in the north and central Bahamas. With the hike in VAT, can the economies of these islands survive, or will residents be forced into domestic migration?

The southern islands of The Bahamas include Acklins and Crooked Island, Inagua and Mayaguana, all of which are yet to be properly developed despite their potential in agriculture, marine tourism, real estate and eco-tourism.

A MEASURE OF TAXES There is often talk that the government’s move to raise taxes is a hindrance to the development of the country. This is not entirely true. There is some good

OPPORTUNITIES

and bad in taxation. The key is timing, and the type of tax being implemented.

Taxes help to provide services to the citizens.

In the case of The Bahamas, these include national insurance; social welfare subsidies; the

maintenance of prisons; the police force; a defense force; a public education system; and a public health care system. Certain taxes are put in place to help maintain such services, as well as help the government achieve its goal of reducing the fiscal deficit.

The Bahamas’ tax structure is unique based on the government’s need to service 14 inhabited islands that are home to local and foreign residents with different incomes. The government would like to capture revenue from every consumer living in or visiting The Bahamas.

It does not consider, on a case-by-case basis, which constituency or island should receive more or less revenue. However, residents in the southern islands do not always have access to, or the same quality of, public benefits compared to the capital, Nassau, and other Family Islands. Yet they contribute the same percentage of VAT. If the government were to single out, for example, residents in a

If the government were to propose today that all taxes were to be lifted for the southern islands, would this change the thinking of potential local and international investors? Would there be an influx of investors attempting to bring their businesses to these islands? Perhaps taxation is not the only issue. If the government were to eliminate all red tape related to doing business, eliminate tariffs and other taxes, and provide a small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) fund for local investors on these islands, will these islands see an increase inactivity and entrepreneur interest?

To develop these “tax free zones”, the government and Bahamian entrepreneurs must learn to work handin-hand.

Governments must allow entrepreneurs and investors access to capital and easy processes within economies that are better off, such as New Providence, Abaco and Bimini. Then, perhaps, investors would see the need to expand their businesses or start up new companies on these islands if they are allowed room

to successfully grow their companies.

A POSITION ON TAXES Taxation has been a bone of contention among residents of different countries.

In The Bahamas, taxes are always an interesting topic of debate because you have those that simply do not want to pay taxes, and then there are those who opine that their tax dollars are not being put to good use. In a developing country, governments face tremendous pressure from global disruptions, local capital restrictions and bureaucratic legislation. The Bahamas is no different.

However, governments must know when and where not to make certain decisions. For instance, the Bahamian government’s recent decision to increase VAT was partly done in an effort to help pay unfunded arrears and eliminate the fiscal deficit. But an increase to 12 percent also comes at a time when unemployment remains high, and there has been little to no economic growth in the past four years. The profit margin of industries such as tourism/ financial services continues to shrink as these markets are becoming more saturated, leaving less room for a competitive advantage to be obtained.

CONCLUSION The southern islands, along with other Family Islands, are not as developed as New Providence, Grand Bahama, Bimini or Abaco, and therefore do not deserve to be taxed the same way. The government should alleviate residents on these islands of VAT so that businesses can grow and investors are incentivised to do business. While these islands are part of The Bahamas, their circumstances differ and the economic realities are much different. There should be serious consideration of this by the government.

URCA names director for communications industry VETERAN journalist and broadcaster, Carlton Smith, has joined the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) as director of electronic communications (DEC).

He will have responsibility for all URCA’s regulatory activities in this area. Working with Stephen Bereaux, the chief executive, and under the supervision of URCA’s Board, Mr Smith will oversee landline and mobile phone services; Internet services; broadcasting; spectrum management and Pay TV. He will also serve as an executive member of URCA’s Board.

Mr Bereaux said Mr Smith’s 34 years of experience in the media, including more than a decade in leadership roles, made him “an ideal candidate for the role”. His expertise in broadcasting and journalism will help URCA as it continues its regulatory functions, particularly in spectrum management and broadcast content regulation.

CARLTON SMITH Mr Smith, who spent 25 years at the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas (BCB), facilitated ZNS TV-13’s technology transition and the upgrade of its IT infrastructure and AM transmission system.

His time at BCB was followed by six years at Guardian Radio as station manager, and then as the host of a talk show. One of his immediate roles will be to work with the BCB

on the transition to public broadcasting.

Mr Smith is a graduate of the London School of Journalism and the University of Sussex through Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication in London, now Ravensbourne University.

He also holds graduate certificates in management development, business communication and information technology.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 18, 2019, PAGE 3

BPL ‘really killing’ hotels on fuel cost

By NATARIO MCKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net HOTEL operators have warning that Bahamas Power & Light’s (BPL) fuel charge “is really killing us” as they again lamented the impact of high electricity costs on sector profitability.

Carlton Russell, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) president, told Tribune Business: “This is one of our biggest costs next to labour, and it is a concern with the fuel surcharge in recent months.

We look for some sort of relief in the next few months as BPL seeks to get Clifton back up, and obviously the big benefit would definitely come down the road with their 2022 plan as it relates to LNG. “Energy is one of our biggest costs, and to keep our operation’s sustainability we really have focus on the bottom line. It isn’t how much money you make but how much we can allow to flow to our business.

“If energy is eating up a big amount of that revenue it is a concern to any operator, particularly the small

and medium-sized operators. The larger properties are exercising green initiatives to ensure that we are cost efficient, but this fuel charge is really killing us.”

BPL late last year “capped” its fuel charge at 19.15 cents per kilowatt hour (KWh), meaning that it did not pass on all such costs as is its traditional practice.

Whitney Heastie, BPL’s chief executive, in a November 27, 2018, email to Desmond Bannister, minister of works, said December’s fuel charge will be 21.676 cents per KWh, based on a $33.916m fuel burn cost and 156.467 KW hours of power generated.

“Therefore, the fuel charge for December is 21 cents,” Mr Heastie wrote.

“However, since the last increase in fuel charges we have not been passing on the full amount. So the last couple of months we have capped the charge at 19.15 cents.”

Mr Bannister confirmed this was so, as October’s $33.916m fuel spend - divided by the 166.467m kilowatt hours used by consumers

- resulted in a 21.76 cents per kilowatt hour fuel charge.

He added: “So the fuel charge, based on the total consumption which you will see in December, would have been 21 cents. But BPL doesn’t pass the full amount on. They’ve capped that charge at 19.15 cents.

And so, the charge that you actually see, what we call a fuel surcharge, is not a fuel surcharge; it is actually you paying for the fuel that is being used throughout the country.”

Joy Jibrilu, the Ministry of Tourism’s director-general, addressed last Friday’s BHTA meeting on the Bahamas’ tourism marketing campaign featuring Bahamian-American rock star, Lenny Kravitz.

“We are going out there and making a whole lot of noise in the marketplace.

The marketing and brand awareness campaign with Lenny Kravitz really hits home. I think it is a great fit and will generate a whole lot of interest. Last year was one of our best years in the last decade. This year promises to be quite strong,” said Mr Russell.

BPL EYES ‘COMPREHENSIVE PUSH’ TO KEEP THE LIGHTS ON

By NATARIO MCKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net BAHAMAS Power & Light’s (BPL) chairman says that the utility is eyeing more “comprehensive” initiatives than reconnection deals to help customers keep their lights on.

Dr Donovan Moxey, pictured, told Tribune Business that BPL was not disclosing any details “at this time on its Christmas reconnection offer. This allowed customers whose electricity supply had been disconnected to have their power restored on in time for the holidays if they paid 25 percent of their past due balance. Customers with more than 60 days in arrears were also given the opportunity to pay 25 percent of past due balances prior to December 21 to avoid disconnection before Christmas.

Dr Moxey, speaking after a Friday presentation to the Bahamas Hotel

and Tourism Association (BHTA), said: “We looked at that and we made a decision not to release any information on that at this time.

“There are some other customer service initiatives that we are planning.

We are looking at doing a much more comprehensive customer initiative push in terms of keeping people on and making it easier to pay their bills.”

When asked about BPL’s rate reduction bond (RRB), viewed as critical to raising the nine-figure sum required to restructure the state-owned utility’s legacy debt, Dr Moxey added: “That’s very much in progress.

“Obviously, BPL is a part

of it and so is the rate reduction bond company (special purpose vehicle). When you look at the establishment of that company, the establishment of the board of directors, as well as the quantifying of BPLs aims and requirements around that bond structure, we are working on all those actively.”

Dr Moxey said the agreement with Shell for the new, multi-fuel power plant at Clifton Pier was “actively being negotiated” but declined to comment further. “There’s nothing public to announce specific to that that this time, but that is being negotiated actively,” he added.

Referring to the fires at BPL’s Clifton power station last September, which caused significant damage to the utility’s two most efficient generation engines, Dr Moxey said: “We’re still working through that process with the insurance agents and adjusters. All of that is still being worked through.”

MOVIES MASTERS SERIES BACK IN THE BAHAMAS THE Movie Masters lecture series returns to Nassau and Grand Bahama this month to give Bahamian local access to Hollywood professionals.

The Bahamas Film & Television Commission launched the forum in 2018 to provide opportunities for Bahamians to benefit from the experience of individuals who have already made their mark on the film industry.

Film and television producer, Sean Robins, pictured, will be the special guest for this year’s instalment of the Movie Masters series.

He is a partner of Broken Road Productions, which has produced films such as Knight & Day with Tom Cruise; The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, starring Nicolas Cage; and Tag, starring Jeremy Renner.

“We are fortunate to have Sean on board with us for the next Movie Masters,” said Clarence Rolle, general manager of the Bahamas Film & Television Commission.

“Sean started his production career at George Clooney’s Maysville Pictures, and has gained a wealth of experience

since then. With his experience in production and his screenwriting degrees, he will be particularly helpful to those who want to be producers and screenwriters.”

Movie Masters lectures will be held on February 25 and 26 in Nassau at the University of The Bahamas’ Franklyn R Wilson Graduate Centre. It then moves to Grand Bahama on February 27 and 28 at the Pelican Bay Resort’s Convention Centre. Lectures begin at 6pm each evening. The first night on each island is dedicated to Lessons for the Producer, and the second night focuses on Screenwriting: Structure for Stories and Characters.

The inaugural Movie Masters event brought Vince Gerardis, co-executive producer of Game of Thrones, and Marcus Nispel, director of dozens of music videos and films such as Friday the 13th, to share their experience and knowledge with Bahamian filmmakers.

Movie Masters is a complimentary event presented to the public by the Ministry of Tourism.

PAGE 4, Monday, February 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Island Luck ‘back to business’; deal may trouble rivals FROM PAGE ONE Mr Sears said the past halfyear’s uncertainty, following the new and substantially increased tax burden’s unveiling in the 2018-2019 budget, had caused his client and others to “retrench” and hold-off on further job-creating expansions and gaming innovation.

While the settlement will bring “stability” back to the web shop industry, Mr Sears also hinted that the government’s tax treatment of domestic gaming contrasted sharply - and unfavourably - with the numerous tax breaks, incentives and subsidies granted to the

foreign-owned hotel casinos.

Referring to Island Luck’s parent company, the former attorney general said of last week’s deal: “It is an accommodation made between our clients, Playtech Systems, and the government.

The client has agreed to the agreement.

“But it is incumbent on me to say there needs to be a more practical approach to the tax regime in The Bahamas based on proper empirical research and advice, and the principal of fairness and proportionality.

“When you’re dealing with tax policy it should always be guided by balancing the requirements of the state with ensuring the

sustainability of the industry and, most significantly, proportionality, treating like organisations the same and making sure you are also progressive.”

Mr Sears said a progressive system, where tax levies are linked to ability to pay, would ensure “the burden is proportionately shared across the society. He added: “You cannot have a situation where entire segments of the same sector are treated disproportionately or one better than the other.”

As for the taxation dispute’s impact on his client and the wider sector, the former attorney general told Tribune Business: “You want there to be stability so

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the enterprise can go out and grow their business, and grow the economy of the country, but when you have measures not supported by empirical evidence then it creates periods of uncertainty.

“Where you have uncertainty there is retrenchment or contraction of business. People don’t expand when there’s uncertainty, and a lack of clarity about public policy and legislative changes. Certainly, for our client [Island Luck], they will now continue to innovate and improve the efficiency of their business to be as competitive as possible.

“It is the intention of our client to get back to business and continue to be innovative, efficient and productive, and continue to make a contribution as a corporate citizen within the country.”

Mr Sears conceded, though, that the agreement with the government “will create some uncertainty for some of the smaller operators”. He added: “That’s likely to happen. It may create a problem for some operators.”

His comments support this newspaper’s understanding that not all web shops are thrilled about the settlement given the implications it may have for the financial health of their operations.

Tribune Business’s analysis of the deal suggests that the prime beneficiaries are Mr Bastian and Island Luck, as the largest web shop chain and market leader, and the government. Those likely to fare less well are the smaller web shop chains.

This is because Island Luck, as shown by research from Christiansen Capital

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

Advisors, the web shop industry’s own consultants, was virtually the only operator exposed to the higher tax rates under the government’s original “sliding scale” taxation structure.

It was the sole web shop chain exposed to rates ranging from 30 percent to 50 percent on its gross gaming revenues, whereas five of the remaining six operators would only have faced the lowest 20 percent rate. Chances was the only chain, apart from Island Luck, which would have seen a 25 percent rate levied on a miniscule portion of its revenue.

The government last week said the agreement with web shop operators would reduce its projected take from the “sliding scale” by $15m annually - from the initially projected $50m to $35m - as a result of shrinking the six rates to just two, lower levies of 15 percent and 17.5 percent, respectively.

While the bulk of Island Luck’s revenues will be taxed at 17.5 percent, this is much lower than the rates originally proposed in the 2018-2019 budget. As a result, it seems likely that much of the $15m revenue reduction will accrue to this web shop.

While its six rivals will largely only attract the lower 15 percent rate, this still represents a 36.3 percent - or more than onethird increase - upon the 11 percent rate they were originally paying. And the five percentage point reduction in the originally proposed 20 percent rate means they will likely see fewer benefits than Island Luck.

It is also unclear whether the settlement deal will be enough to stave off the downsizings, store closures and job losses that the web shops threatened last June.

While Island Luck is highly unlikely to go through with the 350 lay-offs it threatened, A Sure Win had warned of 11 store closures and 50 redundancies, while

Paradise Games also told staff to prepare for the worst.

Dionisio D’Aguilar, the minister responsible for gaming, last summer argued that the restructured and increased taxation was likely to accelerate web shop industry consolidation that was already being driven by technology and competition.

“There are three of the seven gaming houses that are either too small or have been increasingly losing market share over the past three years that, unless something dramatic occurs, I expect them to begin to close locations,” Mr D’Aguilar said in his 2018-2019 budget communication.

Last week’s deal also largely allows the government to save face, and present a convincing argument to the Bahamian people that it has not totally caved in to the web shop industry’s demands - a charge that some observers were making in the wake of last week’s agreement.

Still, where the government and web shops have ended up is almost exactly where the gaming industry’s own consultants suggested last June. Gavin Hamilton’s report argued that international evidence and research showed “that the optimal tax rate should be between 15-20 percent” - exactly where the two sides have settled.

Yet the government, as it did, is still able to point to a 127 percent increase in the web shop industry’s tax burden, which it says will rise from $21-$22m per annum to the new $50m per annum.

That is still a one-third, or $25m, reduction on the budget’s forecast $75m revenue increase.

The $50m and $75m figures also include revenues generated by taxing web shop patrons. This has been switched to a “winnings” tax as opposed to the original levy on deposits and overthe-counter lottery ticket sales.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 18, 2019, PAGE 5

EXCELERATE’S FSRU EXEMPLAR, and Equinor’s LNG carrier, Arctic Voyager, performing the first ship-to-ship transfer of LNG in The Bahamas at South Riding Point.

LNG transfer first for The Bahamas THE first ever shipto-ship (STS) transfer of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in The Bahamas was completed on February 7 at Grand Bahama’s South Riding Point terminal.

Excelerate Energy used its floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) Exemplar, and Equinor’s LNG carrier, Arctic Voyager, to transfer a full LNG cargo while moored at the latter’s South Riding Point

BIMINI A ‘VIRGIN’ CRUISE LOCATION

THE SCARLET LADY SIR Richard Branson has revealed that Bimini will feature in all voyages once his Virgin Voyages cruise line opens for business in 2020.

The Beach Club, which is being built in partnership with Resorts World Bimini, will be a regular port of call for the company’s first ship, the Scarlet Lady, which is taking bookings for its first season sailing from New York. Voyages will depart from April 1 through October 25, 2020.

“I’ve dreamed of starting my own cruise line since I was in my 20’s, and now the launch is finally getting close,” said Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Voyages. “We have taken the time to think about every detail and craft an experience that brings the Virgin brand to life and disrupts the travel industry.”

“At Virgin Voyages we are going beyond just great design to defy and redefine luxury to be rebellious luxe,” said Tom McAlpin, president and chief executive for Virgin Voyages.

“This new luxury is about knowing you are taken care of; that you’re never being nickel and dimed; and what you want - even some of the things you didn’t know you wanted - are already taken care of for you.”

The Beach Club at Bimini is designed by Miami-based architects EOA Inc, featuring natural materials and soft earth tones that organically blend into the seascape. It will overlook the ocean and cascade down to the sea with an expansive lagoon-style pool as the central anchor of the club.

Mornings at The Beach Club will begin with yoga and meditation. The night will wind down with a beach bonfire to close out the evening with an acoustic musical performance.

Its Bahamian-inspired menus will serve up island favourites such as conch and mango salad, banana leaf-wrapped queen snapper, Bahamian rum cake and more. The Beach Club will feature six bars, beach loungers and beach side and poolside cabanas available for rent. There will also be active areas for watersports and beach play.

storage and transshipment facility.

“Excelerate conducted the industry’s first commercial STS transfer of LNG in 2007, and since then, STS transfers have been completed and proven safe in a wide range of environments, now including The Bahamas,” stated Excelerate’s chief commercial officer, Daniel Bustos. “This new STS location allows us to provide additional commercial flexibility to our

customers and respond to prompt market needs in a safe and reliable manner.”

Excelerate recently completed its 1,500th commercial STS transfer on February 3, 2019, at the Engro Elengy Terminal in Port Qasim, Pakistan. To date, Excelerate has successfully transferred over 170,900,000 cubic meters of LNG using its STS protocol – of the 1,500 operations, over 1,300 have been with third-party vessels.

PAGE 6, Monday, February 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Banks unmoved over gaming ‘myth debunk’ FROM PAGE ONE that there is no good reason why Bahamian commercial banks will not deal with the sector.

However, Mr Bowe told Tribune Business: “There are several issues that the report doesn’t address. The first one is that when you look at patron accounts, and the size and volume of transactions, that is looking at various gaming houses as financial institutions themselves.

“What that doesn’t look

at is the aggregation of cash flows by gaming houses because that is what is banked at the bank. Each individual patron account may be $1,000, but having 10,000 patrons turns that very quickly into $10m. It’s not going to be 10,000 individual customer accounts.”

Mr Bowe said there was often “an undue spotlight shone on the gaming houses in terms of being discriminated” against by Bahamian commercial banks, but he argued that similar cashintensive businesses faced higher scrutiny and due

diligence too.

Pointing to money transfer businesses as an example, he added: “Why the risk factor is elevated is because the high volume of cash transactions are always seen as susceptible to money laundering. It’s not saying the business is condoning or promoting money laundering; it’s the movement of cash.

“What is the risk you have to address when banking the gaming houses? It’s not the customer, who is often a customer of the bank; it’s the gaming houses themselves

and all the transactions they have there.

“Any business that is cash intensive - sales, deposits and withdrawals - are elevated to a higher risk even if they’re accepted by the financial institution. The level of monitoring, what is acceptable and reasonable activity, gets elevated because the banks do not know the source of the cash being deposited,” Mr Bowe continued.

“There are a number of businesses in addition to gaming houses who say they have experienced significant issues opening up bank accounts because they are high cash industries.

The [Gaming Board] report says gaming house patrons are not using their facilities for money laundering as the dollar amounts are too small, but the deposits are aggregates of this.”

Pointing out that all businesses, including banks, had a right to determine who they transacted with, Mr Bowe said the issue of whether to deal with web shops or not was “a business decision” for each Bahamian financial institution.

Pointing out that bank fees were largely levied as “a cost recovery” for the services provided, he added that the extra oversight and monitoring required for cash transactions typically made dealing with them unprofitable unless this money was able to be lent out quickly.

“What is not appreciated is cash transactions don’t earn money for the bank,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business. “Taking larger cash deposits is not profitable for an institution. It’s more a social service, putting money

into an institution that is able to protect it.”

Bahamian web shops thus fall at the extreme end of this unprofitability scale, at least where the banks are concerned, and the Clearing Banks chairman said the industry’s frequent need for large sums would create another issue by requiring institutions to keep significant liquidity on hand to cover withdrawals.

Bank of The Bahamas, which is 82.6 percent majority-owned by the government, remains the only Bahamian commercial bank to have publicly stated it accepts web shop deposits after gaining approval from its foreign correspondent bank.

However, the three Canadian-owned banks - Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Scotiabank and CIBC FirstCaribbean - have all said worldwide policies prevent them from accepting web shop industry deposits. And Commonwealth Bank and Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) have shown little interest in doing so either.

“Whether the gaming house owners appreciate it or not, the financial institutions in The Bahamas do not survive without correspondent banks,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business. “The correspondent banks are North American driven, and are not a big proponent of online gaming. Whether it is a gold mine or not is irrelevant.

“He who has the gold makes the rules. If they say we cannot have this service if you have these clients, and online gaming is one of them, we have to decide whether or not we can exist without them or forego

opportunities with these clients [web shops] because correspondent relationships are of greater value.”

The Bahamian economy could not function without its correspondent banking links, given that its status as an import dependent international finance and business centre makes it imperative that businesses and clients are able to clear foreign currency transactions via the commercial banks.

This, though, remains an obstacle to one of the principle reasons for legalising, regulating and taxing web shop gaming - bringing the multi-million dollar sums it generates into the formal banking system and avoiding the scrutiny of international bodies, some of which have already listed The Bahamas for perceived weaknesses in its anti-financial crime defences.

“We have always argued the point on emotion and discrimination,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business of web shops and the banks. “It has to be more dispassionate; what are the practical issues, and are there mechanisms to clear these hurdles.

“That’s not going to be done by saying there’s discrimination. Any business has the right to decide who they do business with. We cannot jump on one particular finding as there is not one particular issue.

“The patron accounts are not the single issue that led to the difficulties in banking, as it goes back to the high volume of cash transactions.

The correspondent banks don’t like to see that type of activity. If we could do without the correspondent banks it would be a different story.”

PAGE 8, Monday, February 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Landfill manager eyes $20m raise FROM PAGE ONE “We started yesterday [Thursday] in earnest,” he told this newspaper. “We’re following up. We have some soft commitments and are now going to be cementing those. This first lot is $20m, and we’re confident at the moment.

“We don’t need the $45m in one shot; it’s phased. It’s targeted at local institutional investors, accredited

investors. It’s for straight debt; senior debt.” Financings typically close once agreements with the government are sealed, as investors often wait until this stage is reached to part with their monies and deliver on previous commitments.

The capital is being raised under the banner of New Providence Ecology Park Ltd, the entity created by Providence Advisors and WRDG to operate and

A SKYVIEW of the New Providence Landfill on fire.

MARKET REPORT THURSDAY, 14 FEBRUARY 2019

t. 242.323.2330 | f. 242.323.2320 | www.bisxbahamas.com

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE 2,062.00 | CHG -3.90 | %CHG -0.19 | YTD -47.45 | YTD% -2.25 BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.50 20.91 7.50 5.50 1.64 0.67 3.68 10.20 6.60 4.85 12.50 2.74 1.78 8.50 6.30 14.10 6.99 4.47 13.85

52WK LOW 3.50 19.17 4.90 3.34 1.00 0.19 2.10 8.70 6.10 3.54 9.01 2.30 1.50 7.25 6.10 10.10 5.85 3.25 12.51

1050.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

PREFERENCE SHARES

1.00 103.00 100.00 100.00 105.00 103.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Bank of Bahamas Benchmark Cable Bahamas CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Colina Holdings Commonwealth Bank Commonwealth Brewery Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Emera Incorporated Famguard Fidelity Bank Finco Focol J. S. Johnson Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Commonwealth Bank Class E Commonwealth Bank Class J Commonwealth Bank Class K Commonwealth Bank Class L Commonwealth Bank Class M Commonwealth Bank Class N Fidelity Bank Class A Focol Class B

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00

SYMBOL AML APD BPF BWL BOB BBL CAB CIB CHL CBL CBB CWCB DHS EMAB FAM FBB FIN FCL JSJ CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA CBLE CBLJ CBLK CBLL CBLM CBLN FBBA FCLB

SECURITY Fidelity Bank Note 22 (Series B) +

SYMBOL FBB22

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2015-1-3Y BGS: 2014-12-5Y BGS: 2015-1-5Y BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-3Y BGS: 2015-6-5Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-3Y BGS: 2015-10-5Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y

BAH29 BG0203 BG0105 BG0205 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0303 BG0305 BG0307 BG0330 BG0403 BG0405 BG0407

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.20 4.24 2.03 184.51 158.55 1.60 1.74 1.68 1.11 6.99 8.54 6.15 10.52 11.46 10.46 10.00 8.69 11.79

52WK LOW 1.67 3.04 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.54 1.68 1.62 1.08 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20

LAST CLOSE 4.37 17.43 7.00 5.39 1.60 0.67 2.28 9.50 6.16 4.32 10.99 2.56 1.78 8.53 6.30 14.10 6.98 3.60 13.85

CLOSE 4.37 17.43 7.00 5.39 1.64 0.67 2.28 9.50 6.16 4.29 10.99 2.61 1.78 8.48 6.30 14.10 6.98 3.60 13.85

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.04 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -0.03 0.00 0.05 0.00 -0.05 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CLOSE 100.00

CHANGE 0.00

107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

LAST SALE 100.00 107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund FG Financial Preferred Income Fund FG Financial Growth Fund FG Financial Diversified Fund FG Financial Global USD Bond Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Equities Sub Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - High Yield Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Alternative Strategies Fund Colonial Bahamas Fund Class D Colonial Bahamas Fund Class E Colonial Bahamas Fund Class F

VOLUME 50 10,584

241,550

1,000

VOLUME

EPS$ 0.147 0.932 -0.306 0.323 0.085 0.000 -0.523 0.700 0.480 0.154 0.627 0.102 0.209 0.000 0.481 0.762 0.578 0.277 0.631

DIV$ 0.120 1.260 0.000 0.240 0.000 0.020 0.000 0.710 0.220 0.120 0.620 0.060 0.060 0.084 0.240 0.500 0.150 0.090 0.600

P/E 29.7 18.7 N/M 16.7 N/M N/M -4.4 13.6 12.8 27.9 17.5 25.6 8.5 N/M 13.1 18.5 12.1 13.0 21.9

YIELD 2.75% 7.23% 0.00% 4.45% 0.00% 2.99% 0.00% 7.47% 3.57% 2.80% 5.64% 2.30% 3.37% 0.99% 3.81% 3.55% 2.15% 2.50% 4.33%

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST Prime + 1.75% 6.95% 4.00% 4.25% 4.25% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.00% 4.25% 4.50% 6.25% 3.50% 3.88% 4.25%

NAV 2.20 4.24 2.03 184.51 147.81 1.60 1.74 1.68 1.11 7.47 8.64 6.60 10.37 11.69 10.38 9.92 8.69 11.79

YTD% 12 MTH% 3.97% 3.97% 2.49% 2.49% 2.43% 2.43% 3.26% 3.26% -3.65% -3.65% 4.30% 4.30% 2.60% 2.60% 3.40% 3.40% 1.46% 1.46% -1.08% 1.77% -5.96% -3.05% 1.90% 4.59% 7.24% 11.96% 2.77% 3.88% 3.94% 4.69% -0.71% 0.16% 3.96% 7.75% 8.34% 14.88

MATURITY 19-Oct-2022 20-Nov-2029 30-Jul-2018 16-Dec-2019 30-Jul-2020 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2018 26-Jun-2020 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2018 15-Oct-2020 15-Oct-2022 NAV Date 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 31-Dec-2018 30-Sep-2018 30-Sep-2018 30-Sep-2018

MARKET TERMS BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | FG CAPITAL MARKETS 242-396-4000 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225

manage the Tonique Williams Highway site and oversee its transformation from the health hazard that exists today. The consortium now has 30 days to raise the necessary funding before taking possession of the keys.

“All the scraps and minutiae are being finalised,” Mr Kerr said of the impending landfill takeover. “People are being mobilised so we can hit the ground running in 30 days. We’re aiming to have a staff complement of 40 to 45 people.”

The Providence Advisors/WRDG consortium’s proposal was initially billed as having a $130m price tag when chosen as the preferred bidder in August 2018. This costing was split into around $50m for the landfill’s remediation and operation, with a further $70m earmarked for a small solar and biomass renewable energy power plant that would feed the produced energy into the Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) grid.

However, a $45m figure - relating to just the remediation and operations - was touted at last week’s signing with Romauld Ferreira, minister of the environment and housing. Mr Kerr, though, said the group had not abandoned their renewable energy plans.

“We’re continuing to pursue the renewable energy component of the project as originally envisaged,” he told Tribune Business. This newspaper understands that this was not included in the initial phase due to the need to obtain approvals from both BPL and the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) before selling the energy produced to the former’s grid.

Describing the Providence Advisors/WRDG consortium’s selection and progress to-date as “a

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

monumental achievement”, Mr Kerr added: “I’ve been a part of this process for seven years in terms of time and effort, and two Requests for Proposals. The group brought me in seven years ago, and they’ve been working on it for 15 to 20 years.

The mood is very positive.”

He added that a potential initial public offering (IPO) of shares in the landfill manager to the Bahamian public remained “on the table for consideration”.

Providence Advisors/ WRDG had previously described the landfill’s transformation as “one of the largest public-private partnership (PPP) infrastructure projects to-date” in The Bahamas, with its proposal featuring a combination of recycling, renewable energy and improved management as the solution to Nassau’s waste woe.

The consortium had intended to recycle and reuse “50 percent or more” of the landfill’s incoming waste streams, while 30 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy - split evenly between solar and biomass - was to be sold to BPL through a power purchase agreement (PPA).

The renewable energy and recycling initiatives are designed to extend the landfill’s life by a further 34 years to 2052, as they will consume large quantities of incoming waste, while also providing the necessary breathing room to deal with the site’s present mountains of garbage.

Other goals include the creation of 75 long-term jobs and the reduction of annual greenhouse gas emissions by 220,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year - an amount equivalent to 37,000 automobiles’ emissions.

And, adopting the landfill transformation model established in the US, Providence Advisors/WRDG will convert the site into “lush”, green surface vegetation that will facilitate the development of a mini golf course, fitness centre and ecology park that will all be open to the Bahamian public.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 18, 2019, PAGE 9

Union blasts govt as BTC ‘anxiety’ grows

DINO ROLLE FROM PAGE ONE that occurred after the last episode of industrial unrest in late November 2018.

Speaking after 65 percent of staff at BTC-owned retail stores called in sick last Thursday, Mr Rolle argued that as the company’s second largest shareholder the government “cannot wash its hands” of rising tensions stemming from further job cut fears and contentious industrial agreement negotiations.

He denied that Thursday’s absences represented a “sickout”, instead blaming “a social meeting the night before last” that was held by the union, although its impact appears to have extended nationwide.

Garry Sinclair, BTC’s chief executive, previously told this newspaper that the company was eyeing a “rationalisation” of its 68-store network because “not all are providing the kind of seamless customer experience” it wanted, although he did not distinguish between companyowned and franchise outlets.

In response, Mr Rolle demanded that BTC management give precise details on its plans and how they may affect workers and union members, accusing it of speaking in “vague, ambiguous terms” to-date.

Branding BTC’s latest industrial agreement offer, which the company described as its “last and best”, as “extremely offensive”, the BCPOU president urged the communications carrier to stop treating the union as “a distant partner”.

Suggesting that Mr Sinclair was unfamiliar with a unionised corporate environment, Mr Rolle called on the BTC chief to unveil his growth plans for the company as opposed to simply focusing on cutting costs and calling on the union to adjust its financial demands to the reality of a competitive environment.

Pledging that the union was ready to “fight” if necessary, the BCPOU president told Tribune Business: “Garry needs to come and be specific as to what his intentions are, and stop using these ambiguous terms.

“The union, even today, doesn’t know exactly what management plans for the retail stores. There are only two owned by BTC in New Providence, Mall at Marathon and Southwest Plaza. Garry needs to come in, sit down and be precise: What are your plans?

“The union needs to know what your plans are for this company in general. We’ve been asking for that since Garry came in last August.

He’s certainly implied that there’s going to be some impact for those persons who work in the retail stores, but at this point the union does not know exactly what it is. “ Mr Rolle said he had written

GARRY SINCLAIR to Mr Sinclair three to four weeks’ ago, warning that BTC staff morale was low. “The union’s position is that this company is unsettled, and the anxiety level of the members is ticking up,” he said, adding that the BCPOU still remained concerned about call centre jobs with customer inquiries still being answered in Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago.

Arguing that any “outsourcing” of BTC’s call centre functions would be a breach of the Government’s 2011 privatisation agreement with Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), Mr Rolle said the union “will not rest” until the Minnis administration ensures the latter and its parent, Liberty Latin America, live up to the terms of that deal.

“The government cannot wash its hands of this,” he told Tribune Business. “We have heard literally squat from the government, even after those high profile meetings with the union. This union is extremely disappointed in the hands-off approach this government is taking in respect of CWC and BTC management.”

Mr Rolle said the BCPOU’s last industrial agreement with BTC expired in April 2017, almost two years ago, but management had indicated it has already submitted its “last and final offer” - something the union found “extremely offensive”.

Responding to Mr Sinclair’s call for the union to realise BTC’s revenues and profits are under pressure following the end of its mobile monopoly, and emergence of Aliv, the BCPOU chief said: “At the same time, Mr Sinclair and management have an obligation to make sure this company grows, and this company works for the Bahamian people and employees.

“Rather than come in here like every other chief executive, and cut costs to the bottom line, Mr Sinclair needs to be innovative and grow this company. Mr Sinclair needs to realise he’s operating in a competitive environment and come with his plans to grow BTC.” Mr Sinclair previously said he wanted BTC to become a model for how a unionised environment benefits corporate performance, but Mr Rolle said he appeared unfamiliar with such a culture and needed to “come to terms” with it”.

Warning that the BCPOU and its members were prepared for a fight with management “if that’s the path we’re on”, he added: “If management want to play hard ball and continue to treat as if we are some distant partner, rather than come to the table and be reasonable, we’re going to continue to have this fight.”

Mr Sinclair could not be reached for comment.

PAGE 10, Monday, February 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

A PAYLESS store front is seen in Philadelphia. Paylesss ShoeSource is shuttering all of its 2,100 remaining stores in the US and Puerto Rico, joining a list of iconic names like Toys R Us and Bon-Ton that have been shuttered in the last year. The Topeka, Kansas-based chain said on Friday it will hold liquidation sales starting yesterday and wind down its e-commerce operations.

Photo: Matt Rourke/AP

Payless ShoeSource to shutter all of its remaining US stores NEW YORK Associated Press PAYLESS ShoeSource is shuttering all of its 2,100 remaining stores in the US and Puerto Rico, joining a list of iconic names like Toys R Us and Bon-Ton that have closed down in the last year.

The Topeka, Kansasbased chain said on Friday it will hold liquidation sales starting yesterday and wind down its e-commerce operations. All of the stores will remain open until at least the end of March and the majority will remain open until May. The debt-burdened chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April 2017, closing hundreds of stores as part of its reorganisation.

At the time, it had over 4,400 stores in more than 30 countries. It remerged from restructuring four months later with about 3,500 stores and eliminated more than $435m in debt.

The company said in an email that the liquidation doesn’t affect its franchise operations or its Latin American stores, which remain open for business as usual. It lists 18,000 employees worldwide.

Shoppers are increasingly shifting their buying online or heading to discount stores like TJ Maxx to grab deals on name-brand shoes. That shift has hurt traditional retailers, even low-price outlets like Payless. Heavy debt loads have also handcuffed retailers, leaving them less flexible to invest in their businesses.

But bankruptcies and store closures will continue through 2019 so there’s “no light at the end of the tunnel”, according to a report by Coresight Research.

Before this announcement, there have been 2,187 US store closing announcements this year, with Gymboree and Ascena Retail, the parent of Lane Bryant and other brands, accounting for more than half the total, according to the research firm. This year’s total is up 23 percent from the 1,776 announcements a year ago. Year-to-date, retailers have announced 1,411 store openings, offsetting 65 percent of store closures, it said.

Payless was founded in 1956 by two cousins, Louis and Shaol Lee Pozez, to offer self-service stores selling affordable footwear.

Amazon dumped New York, but cities still wooing the company

By MIKE CATALINI Associated Press AMAZON’S breakup with New York was still fresh when other cities started sending their own valentines to the online giant.

Officials in Newark, New Jersey, one of the 18 finalists that Amazon rejected in November when it announced plans to put its new headquarters in New York and northern Virginia, sent a giant heart that read, “NJ & Newark Still Love U, Amazon!”

Representatives of other jilted suitors, such as Chicago and suburban Maryland, tried to get Amazon’s attention and say they’re still interested in a relationship, too.

The love notes came even though Amazon said it doesn’t plan to pick a new city to replace New York, where the HQ2 project was supposed to produce 25,000 jobs.

Instead, the company said it will spread some of those jobs around at other Amazon sites in the US and Canada and expand its existing New York offices.

But why woo a company that says it’s not interested?

For one, the allure of potential jobs is just too much to pass up for many politicians, said Nathan Jensen, a University of Texas government professor who has criticised how economic development incentives are used.

LAURIE ROSS, an actor with the event planners at Life ‘O the Party, holds a message reading “NJ & Newark Still Love U, Amazon!” while arriving at an Amazon office in New York. The love note came despite Amazon saying it’s not seeking a new site.

And even if Amazon spurns them, this is a low-risk way for politicians to show they are looking out for their constituents.

“The ‘losing’ cities can continue to publicly talk about everything they are doing for HQ2 even if they know they don’t have a shot. If they know HQ2 isn’t coming, there is no real cost to doing this,” Jensen said.

More than 230 municipalities in North America competed for HQ2, taking part in a months-long bidding war that Amazon eagerly fomented. Cities offered billions in inducements. In New Jersey, state and local governments put $7bn in incentives on the table as part of the Newark bid.

NOTICE Notice is hereby given that AA’Kil lightbourne of Flying Fish Street, Carvel Beach, Freeport, Grand Bahama Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, for Registration/ Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 18th February, 2019 to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, P.O.Box N7147 Nassau, The Bahamas.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 18, 2019, PAGE 11

MERKEL DEFENDS IRAN DEAL, MULTILATERALISM BUT PENCE RESISTS MUNICH Associated Press GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel drew lengthy applause on Saturday for her spirited defense of a multilateral approach to global affairs and support for Europe’s decision to stand by a nuclear deal with Iran.

US Vice President Mike Pence was not among the impressed, however, and he doubled down on American criticism of Europe.

Merkel’s comments at the Munich Security Conference, an annual gathering of world leaders and top global defense and foreign policy officials, followed days of acrimony between the US and Europe over Iran.

Merkel told the group — which included the largest US delegation ever with dozens of members of Congress, Ivanka Trump, Pence and others — that she shared American concerns about many Iranian efforts to increase its power in the region.

But while she said the split with the US over Iran’s nuclear agreement “depresses me very much”, she defended it as an important channel to Tehran, stressing the need for international diplomacy.

“I see the ballistic missile programme, I see Iran in Yemen and above all I see Iran in Syria,” she said. “The only question that stands between us on this issue is, do we help our common cause, our common aim of containing the damaging or difficult development of Iran, by withdrawing from the one remaining agreement?

Or do we help it more by keeping the small anchor we have in order maybe to exert pressure in other areas?”

Germany, Britain, France, China, Russia and the European Union have been trying to keep the 2015 deal with Iran alive since President Donald Trump unilaterally pulled out of it last year.

The deal offers Iran sanctions relief for limiting its nuclear programme.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has said that, so far, Tehran is sticking to the agreement.

But the US argues that the deal just puts off when Iran might be able to build a nuclear bomb. Speaking after Merkel, Pence pushed for Europeans to end their involvement in the nuclear deal, calling Iran “the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world”.

“The time has come for our European partners to stop undermining US sanctions against this murderous revolutionary regime,” Pence said.

“The time has come for our European partners to stand with us and with the Iranian people, our allies and friends in the region.

The time has come for our European partners to

ANGELA MERKEL withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal.”

Merkel’s speech was warmly received, while Pence’s was met with polite applause.

“This was a big and sayit-as-it-is Merkel speech,” Daniela Schwarzer, the director of the German Council on Foreign Relations think tank, wrote on Twitter. “Minutes of applause and standing ovations for a powerful commitment to picking up the pieces of a shattered (world) order and working on a European and (international) order that creates win-win situations.”

Former US Vice President Joe Biden, who was in office when the Iran nuclear deal was negotiated, went out of his way to thank Merkel and defended the Iran deal as a “significant agreement”.

Biden told the group that many Americans did not agree with the Trump administration’s “America first” approach.

“You heard a lot today about leadership but in my experience, leadership only exists if somebody and others are with you,” he said after Pence’s address.

“Leadership in the absence of people who are with you is not leadership.”

In her speech, Merkel also questioned whether it was a good idea for the US to withdraw troops quickly from Syria “or is that not also strengthening the possibilities for Iran and Russia to exert influence there?”

Turning to nuclear disarmament, Merkel said the recent US announcement that it was pulling out of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty was “inevitable” because of Russian violations.

Moscow followed suit by also withdrawing from the treaty, strongly denying any breaches. The US administration was also worried that the pact was an obstacle to efforts to counter intermediate-range missiles deployed by China, which is not covered by the treaty.

Merkel noted the treaty was conceived “essentially for Europe”, where such missiles were stationed during the Cold War. She said “the answer cannot lie in blind rearmament”.

“Disarmament is something that concerns us all, and we would of course be glad if such negotiations were conducted not just between the United States ... and Russia, but also with China,” she said.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, PEARLINE ROLLE of #34 Sisal Road East, Golden Gates No. 1, Nassau, Bahamas intend to change my name to PEARLINE GRACIE ROLLE KNOWLES. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

NOTICE Notice is hereby given that JOACHIN PATRICK of P.O. Box AB-20291 Dundas Town Abaco, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, for Registration/ Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 18th February, 2019 to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, P.O.Box N7147 Nassau, The Bahamas.

PAGE 12, Monday, February 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

In Brexit limbo, UK veers between high anxiety, grim humour LONDON Associated Press IT’S SAID that history often repeats itself — the first time as tragedy, the second as farce. Many Britons feel they are living through both at the same time as their country navigates its way out of the European Union.

The British government awarded a contract to ship in emergency supplies to a company with no ships. It pledged to replace citizens’ burgundy European passports with proudly British blue ones — and gave the contract to a Franco-Dutch company. It promised to forge trade deals with 73 countries by the end of March, but two years later has only a handful in place (including one with the Faroe Islands).

Pretty much everyone in the UK agrees that the Conservative government’s handling of Brexit has been disastrous. Unfortunately, that’s about the only thing this divided nation can agree on.

With Britain due to leave the EU in six weeks and still no deal in sight on the terms of its departure, both supporters and opponents of Brexit are in a state of high anxiety.

Pro-EU “remainers” lament the looming end of Britons’ right to live and work in 27 other European nations and fear the UK is about to crash out of the bloc without even a divorce deal to cushion the blow.

Brexiteers worry that their dream of leaving the EU will be dashed by bureaucratic shenanigans that will delay its departure or keep Britain bound to EU regulations forever.

“I still think they’ll find a way to curtail it or extend it into infinity,” said “leave” supporter Lucy Harris. “I have a horrible feeling that they’re going to dress it up and label it as something we want, but it isn’t.”

It has been more than two and a half years since Britons voted 52 percent to

BRITAIN’s Prime Minister Theresa May leaves the Houses of Parliament in Westminster following a Brexit vote in the House of Commons, in London on Thursday. May suffered an embarrassing defeat by lawmakers on Thursday in a vote that left her bid to secure a European Union divorce deal stuck between an intransigent EU and a resistant UK Parliament - with Brexit just six weeks away.

48 percent to leave the EU. Then came many months of tense negotiations to settle on Brexit departure terms and the outline of future relations. At last, the EU and Prime Minister Theresa May’s government struck a deal — then saw it resoundingly rejected last month by Britain’s Parliament, which like the rest of the country has split into pro-Brexit and pro-EU camps.

May is now seeking changes to the Brexit deal in hope of getting it through Parliament before March 29.

EU leaders say they won’t renegotiate, and accuse Britain of failing to offer a way out of the impasse.

May insists she won’t ask the EU to delay Britain’s departure, and has refused to rule out a cliff-edge nodeal Brexit.

Meanwhile, Brexit has clogged the gears of Britain’s economic and political life.

The economy has stalled, growing by only 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter as business investment registered a fourth straight quarterly decline.

Big political decisions have been postponed, as May’s minority Conservative government struggles to get bills through a squabbling and divided Parliament.

Major legislation needed to prepare for Brexit has yet to be approved.

Britain still does not have a deal on future trade with

the EU, and it’s unclear what tariffs or other barriers British firms that do business with Europe will face after March 29.

That has left businesses and citizens in an agonising limbo.

Rod McKenzie, director of policy at the Road Haulage Association, a truckers’ lobby group, feels “pure anger” at a government he says has failed to plan, leaving haulers uncertain whether they will be able to travel to EU countries after March 29.

McKenzie says truckers were told they will need Europe-issued permits to drive through EU countries if Britain leaves the bloc without a deal. Of more than 11,000 who applied, only 984 — less than ten percent — have been granted the papers.

“It will put people out of business,” McKenzie said.

“It’s been an absolutely disastrous process for our industry, which keeps Britain supplied with, essentially, everything.”

He’s not alone in raising the specter of shortages; both the government and British businesses have been stockpiling key goods in case of a no-deal Brexit.

Still, some Brexit-backers, such as former Daily Telegraph editor Charles Moore, relish the prospect of a clean break even if it brings shortterm pain.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE BAHAMAS IN THE SUPREME COURT COMMON LAW AND EQUITY DIVISION

2014 CLE/Qui/01039

IN THE MATTER of the Quieting Titles Act, 1959 AND IN THE MATTER OF ALL THAT parcel of land being Lot Number 5 in Block Number 305 in the “Grants Town” comprising 22539 square feet situate on the Southern Side of Fleming Street approximately 109 feet East of Blue Hill Road in the Southern District of the Island of New Providence, one of the Islands of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.

AND IN THE MATTER of the PETITION OF KRANSTON KEY, VERNA BROWN, GERARD BROWN, WENDALL PEDICAN, JOHN ADDERLEY, ANTHONY HARRIS, DENICE BLACK and TARIANO ADDERLEY, ANYA M. JASMIN, SHANDO JOHNSON and ELLAMAE EVANS AND SHARON WHYLLY NOTICE OF ADVERSE CLAIM TAKE NOTICE THAT KRANSTON KEY, VERNA BROWN, GERARD BROWN, WENDALL PEDICAN, JOHN ADDERLEY, ANTHONY HARRIS, DENICE BLACK and TARIANO ADDERLEY, ANYA M. JASMIN, SHANDO JOHNSON and ELLAMAE EVANS AND SHARON WHYLLY of Grants Town, Fleming Street, Nassau, NP, Bahamas, claims to be the owner of the fee simple estate in possession of the tract of land herein before described free from encumbrances.

AND the Petitioners have made application to the Supreme Court of The Bahamas under Section # of The Quieting Titles Acts, 1959 to have her title to the said tract of land investigated and the declared in a Certificate of Title to be granted by the Court in accordance with the provisions of the said Act. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that any person having Dower or a Right Dower or an Adverse Claim or a claim not recognized in the Petition, which was filed in the Registry of the Supreme Court on the 14th of July, 2014, shall, on or before Friday the 25th of April, 2019, file in the Supreme Court and serve on the Petition Attorney at the address below a statement of his/her statement of his/her claim in the prescribed form verified by a Affidavit to be filed there with. Failure of any such person to file and serve a statement of his/her Claim on or before Friday, the 25th day of April, A.D. 2019 will operate as a bar to such Claim Petitioner’s Attorney at the address below.

AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that copies of the Plan was filed in the Supreme Court on the 14th day of February, 2019 and may be inspected at the Registry of the Supreme Court situate at the Ground Floor of the British American Building, Malborough Street (Annex), Nassau, The Bahamas and at the office of the Petition’s attorneys below.

DATED this 14th day of February, A.D. 2019 DULWICH LAW CHAMBERS 2nd Floor, Destiny Plaza #86 Farrington Road Nassau, The Bahamas