06102020 BUSINESS

business@tribunemedia.net

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10, 2020

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ROBERT MYERS

Businessman hails end to COVID travel permit’s ‘nightmare’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN businessman has hailed the end to the government’s COVID-19 travel card “nightmare” that he says cost his corporate group “two weeks’ worth of work”.

Robert Myers, head of the Caribbean Group of Companies, told Tribune Business that the requirement for workers to be examined by a doctor and given the all-clear before they could travel from New Providence to other Bahamian islands had merely added increased costs and time for his business.

Workers then had to register with the Ministry of Health, but Mr Myers said his companies either failed to get travel approvals/confirmations back from the authorities or workers were denied permission to travel without any explanation.

He added that the revised system introduced by the prime minister on May 31, just one week before inter-island domestic travel resumed on Monday, represented a “breakthrough” because they slashed the previous bureaucracy and red tape by requiring that passengers fill out health and travel forms at the point of departure.

“That was a big problem for commerce,” Mr Myers said of the previous COVID-19 “health card”.

“They’ve simplified the inter-island travel, and that’s a significant benefit to the ease of doing business and commerce.

“The doctor part was expensive and time consuming. But the real problem is that by the time we’ve got the doctor approvals we weren’t getting responses back [from the Ministry of Health] or they were declined without explanation as to why. That was the problem.

“I can’t have guys sitting around. We’re trying to deploy people back to work, and can’t wait around.

I don’t believe the Ministry of Health had the resources and capacity to properly manage and carry out the procedures and processes they implemented, and only made it more convoluted.”

Mr Myers said his group had successfully managed to arrange the return of workers from New Providence to Andros just before the “COVID-19 health card” was unveiled in mid-May, having provided PCR tests for all staff to the island’s clinic and nurse, and obtaining permission to travel from the Commissioner of Police.

He described this as “a much better system” than the travel card proposal, something the government appeared to realise a fortnight later when it reduced the requirements to just filling out a travel and health form without the doctor’s examination.

“It was a nightmare. The system was impossible to carry out. You’ve got aviation and health and the private doctors trying to coordinate,” Mr Myers told Tribune Business. “There was no integrated system for doing it. You can imagine

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Accountants bracing for insolvency ‘spike’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN accountants are bracing for “a spike” in corporate liquidations, receiverships and restructuring over the next two-three months as the post-COVID-19 fate of many businesses is determined.

Craig A “Tony” Gomez, the Baker Tilly Gomez accountant and managing partner, told Tribune Business that his profession’s focus as the economy emerges from the pandemic-related lockdown will shift to advising corporate entities as opposed to merely auditing their financial statements.

Arguing that accountants can “be leaders” in the economic recovery and rebuilding process, Mr Gomez said he and his colleagues will likely have to prepare numerous clients

CRAIG “TONY” GOMEZ for the challenge of seeking extra capital - be it new investors, an ownership change or debt financing - to carry them through a period when tourism industry activity is likely to be minimal.

“We will be getting them

AN OIL explorer yesterday pledged its Uruguay licence success “will not distract” from efforts to drill in Bahamian waters as it remains “absolutely 100 percent focused” on its well obligations to this nation.

Simon Potter, the Bahamas Petroleum Company’s (BPC) chief executive, reassured that the company will not be “diverted” from plans to spud a first exploratory well in Bahamian waters in late 2020-early 2021 after it won an initial four-year licence to conduct similar activities in waters off the South American nation’s coast.

Arguing that BPC’s efforts in The Bahamas “undoubtedly” aided its Uruguay bid, Mr Potter described its new exploration opportunity as “complementary” rather than competition for its oil search in

SEE PAGE 5

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• BPC chief: ‘100% focused’ on well here • Bahamian work ‘undoubtedly’ aided win • Views licence extension as ‘routine’

SIMON POTTER this nation’s waters.

He added that BPC had merely seized an opportunity to expand its exploration portfolio at a time when competition from the global energy giants, and larger prospecting rivals, had eased due to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent plunge in global prices and demand.

Acknowledging that BPC

would likely have been “outbid” if global oil prices and markets were healthier, the BPC chief added that the government has yet to formally respond to the oil explorer’s invoking of the “force majeure” clause in its contract and request for a licence extension until “at least June 2021”.

Mr Potter, who said the government had acknowledged receipt of BPC’s request, suggested the extension should be relatively routine given that the company’s licence specifically lists a pandemic such as COVID-19 as sufficient grounds to trigger “force majeure” - a term that deals with “unforeseeable circumstances” that prevent one party from fulfilling the terms of a contract.

He added that BPC’s

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

executed rig contract with Stena Drilling means the company is obligated to drill a Christmas 2020 well in the 47-day “window between December 15, 2020, and February 1, 2021, which should provide further reassurance that the company is not abandoning The Bahamas in favour of Uruguay.

“It’s certainly not going to distract us from our main focus which, of course, is The Bahamas,” Mr Potter told Tribune Business of the Uruguay licence award that was announced yesterday.

“We got to within two-three weeks of drilling here, and then obviously COVID-19 intervened.

“This is not a distraction from our main plan and

that has lasted for two-anda-half to three months - and beyond for some - due to the measures enacted to combat COVID-19’s spread.

Despite earning zero income over this period, rent, utility and over fixed overhead costs have continued to be incurred, eating up whatever financial reserves many businesses have been able to set aside. As a result, many may elect not to re-open, as occurred with Luciano’s, which elected to cease activities with the loss of 72 jobs after COVID19 put “the final nail in the coffin” following two years of sustained, heavy losses.

Mr Gomez told this

Oil explorer: Uruguay licence ‘won’t distract’ from Bahamas

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Doctors Hospital in ‘second record’ before COVID-19

DOCTORS Hospital says a 30.4 percent cut in losses at its Blake Road facility, combined with increased patient revenues, drove a “second consecutive year of record” financial results during the 12 months to end-January.

The medical services provider, in its 2020 annual report, said the $6m net profit generated for the period represented a 48.7 percent increase upon the previous year’s bottom line, which was itself 68 percent ahead of the prior year.

As a result, BISX-listed Doctors has seen its net income more than double in just two years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, growing by 149.9 percent compared to the $2.405m profit generated during its 2018 financial year.

However, net income for its current financial year that closes in January 2021 is likely to take a hit due to the virus as it forced Doctors Hospital to suspend all outpatient services for a three-month period beginning in March.

“The Emergency Powers Act provides that any medical/health facilities operating at the direction and/or control of the government shall be entitled to compensation promptly following the passage of the crisis,” the company’s annual report said.

“Additionally, for the health and safety of the group’s employees as well as the public, all outpatient services were discontinued in March 2020. Outpatient services are planned to resume in phases by June 2020.”

Turning back to its previous financial year, Doctors Hospital said: “Consolidated net profit totalled $6.01m or $0.60 per share compared to a profit of $4.04m or $0.41 per share for the year ended January 31, 2019.

“Net income grew yearover-year by approximately 48.7 percent and reflects the second consecutive year of record financial performance....

Management continued its prior year focus to narrow the losses at Bahamas Medical Centre (Doctors Hospital West).

• Corporate failures to ‘definitely uptick’ • Many companies ‘crying’ over cash flow • Surge will ‘not portend well for economy’ ready to approach financial institutions, helping them and holding their hands to let financial institutions know that while business was interrupted, no way have our clients ceased business and they need to get back into the business community,” he added.

Mr Gomez, though, readily acknowledged that corporate Bahamas will likely see a surge of business closures, takeovers and receiverships due to the inability of many companies to recover from the financial devastation caused by COVID-19.

Most firms will have seen top-line revenues plummet, if not dry-up completely, due to an economic lockdown

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Insurers: COVID order ‘too restrictive to trade’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN property and casualty insurers are urging the government to adjust its COVID-19 premium deferral order on the grounds that it is “too restrictive to trade” as peak hurricane season nears.

Anton Saunders, RoyalStar Assurance’s managing director, told Tribune Business that the industry via the Bahamas Insurance Association (BIA) is calling for the Prime Minister’s Office to give a set date for when the COVID-19 emergency powers order will be lifted.

Besides the uncertainty created by not knowing when these powers will end, Mr Saunders said the extra 60 days granted to clients to either pay or agree a plan to take care of the arrears runs through the end of August and into the September hurricane season peak.

This, he warned, will create cash flow issues for property and casualty insurers and potentially impact the payment commitments made to reinsurers who

• Urging govt to set emergency powers end date • Otherwise ‘not earning penny’ in hurricane peak • Underwriters: ‘We all want to be in business’ ultimately underwrite the multi-billion risks present in The Bahamas. The RoyalStar chief also argued that the government-mandated blanket approach to dealing with troubled insurance clients did not account for those who were delinquent prior to COVID-19.

“A request has been made into the Office of the Prime Minister, and we are still waiting for a response on whether they are going to adjust it for the recommendations of the BIA,” Mr Saunders disclosed to this newspaper. “We just wanted an idea, 60 days after, when that date was.”

The government’s emergency COVID-19 powers have currently been extended until end-June, meaning that the extra 60-day period covered by the premium deferral runs until end-August barring any extension.

Its Emergency Powers (COVID-19) (Special

Provisions) (Amendment) Order 2020, dated April 16, expanded the government’s insurance consumer protection initiative to include property and casualty insurers as well as those on the life and health side, taking the former by surprise.

The order stipulates that for the entire COVID-19 national emergency period dating back to March 17, plus a 60-day period from when it ends, persons who have been terminated from their jobs or are unable to make due premium payments online can defer these outlays. This applies to “general” (property and casualty) insurers as well as their life and health counterparts, who have essentially got what they wanted.

Once the lockdown ends, clients must either pay the full amount of premium due or agree a payment plan with their underwriters during that 60-day period.

Persons still working or with the means to pay, and who can do so remotely, are not covered and must continue to pay.

The order also seeks to deal with what should happen if a claim is made during this period by persons who have not paid their due premium. It requires all insurers to honour the claim but deduct “the outstanding premiums and deductible” from what is paid out.

Mr Saunders, though, argued that the order effectively bound the property and casualty industry’s hands over how it dealt with its clients. He said it forced the sector to treat those in bad standing prior to COVID-19 equally with those who had lost jobs and/or income as a result of the pandemic.

“Let the insurance industry deal with their clients themselves instead of using the emergency powers,” Mr Saunders told Tribune

Business. “We all want to be in business after this. Those were the recommendations.

“The problem is we don’t know when the emergency powers and the 60 days are ending. If the emergency order goes into July, then you’re talking August and September, which is twothirds of the way through hurricane season when we’re not collecting a penny. You can’t run a business like that.

“We will work with clients but the government order is just too restrictive to trade. We wanted some tweaks in it so we would have a certain date, not an unknown.”

The RoyalStar chief added that the industry wanted the emergency powers end date to trigger the payment of outstanding premiums by their clients, not drag this out for another 60 days or two months.

Patrick Ward, Bahamas First’s president and chief executive, told Tribune Business he was unaware of the government’s response to the industry’s recommendations as this was being

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PAGE 2, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

GOVT ‘DEDICATED’ TO TECHNOLOGY HUB GOAL

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A CABINET minister yesterday said the government has not abandoned its Grand Bahama “technology hub” ambitions as it refocuses on training to drive a “resurgence” in entrepreneurs.

Kwasi Thompson, minister of state for Grand Bahama, said: “We are continuing our Grand Bahama tech hub initiative. Education and training is a high priority with respect to that, but it also evolves to jobs, because we have seen with this COVID-19 period an increase in the amount of e-commerce opportunities.

“One thing that was

actually delayed with the COVID-19, and is going to move forward, is an app development programme where we are going to be training 100 Grand Bahamians in app development.

They will then be able to use those skills in the technology industry.

Mr Thompson conceded that the “technology hub” proposal, unveiled with much fanfare in the postgeneral election “Speech from the Throne”, “continues to be a work in progress” but was something the government is “very, very dedicated to”.

However, the app development training initiative appears to be an indication that the government has refocused its efforts on

developing a skilled Bahamian technology workforce that will prove attractive to the industry and encourage companies to domicile in this nation.

The Minnis administration had initially focused on attracting the businesses to Grand Bahama, employing a “top down” as opposed to “bottom up” strategy for building the technology hub, workforce development representing the latter. However, its ambitions seem to have stalled and been marked by several high-profile failures, with GIBC Digital, hailed as the “poster child” for the initiative, closing its physical office and laying off staff.

Mr Thompson, though,

said: “One of the things we are going to have to begin to focus on really is the training aspect, but also we have to focus on entrepreneurship and building that start-up community, because a whole part of the tech hub is not just attracting those large companies, which we want to do, but really developing your tech entrepreneurs.

“We have actually seen a resurgence in young Bahamian tech entrepreneurs, who are very motivated and have actually been doing some very good work and getting international jobs as well. That’s what we have to continue to develop. We are very, very dedicated to pushing that.

“The app development

DPM UNAWARE OF MORE BANK EXITS

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

THE deputy prime minister yesterday said he was unaware of any further Swiss-owned financial institutions preparing to exit The Bahamas while acknowledging the continued pressures on the sector.

K Peter Turnquest, pictured, speaking to reporters assembled outside the Cabinet Office, said he had not heard “anything of late” when it came to a further exodus of international banks from The Bahamas.

He was responding after Anthony Ferguson, CFAL’s principal, told a webinar last week that he “fully expects” to another five to seven Swiss banks to exit The Bahamas within the next 24 months.

He added that the financial services industry had contracted by 75 percent since 2000, with its gross domestic product (GDP) contribution dropping from

25 percent to around ten percent.

Julius Baer, a major Swiss-owned financial institution, announced its departure from The Bahamas prior to COVID-19, although its portfolio was subsequently sold to Ansbacher (Bahamas) - an affiliate of Mr Ferguson’s CFAL. “We know the jurisdiction continues to face challenges with respect to all of the international regulations and standards that have been shifting or, as we say, the goal post moving,

but at the same time we see persons that are still interested in coming to The Bahamas and clients that are interested in this jurisdiction,” Mr Turnquest said.

“So we can see some consolidation, but I believe the jurisdiction will remain viable for those wealth management clients that are not dependent upon tax benefits but rely upon the professional services that are provided from this jurisdiction.”

Turning to taxation in the digital economy, Mr Turnquest added: “There is a huge international debate about taxing rights for the digital economy, where the service may be provided from one jurisdiction for the benefit of consumers in another jurisdiction, because it does affect the tax base on both sides of that equation.

“So it is a very recent and current live debate that’s being had by the global tax forum, of which we are a part and we’ll see how

that shakes out. It is a complex issue and something we are mindful of. As you know, from last year we amended the VAT rules where Airbnb, for instance, they provide bookings in the US for a service that is delivered in The Bahamas, and we amended our rules such that those bookings are not VAT-able, but collecting the tax is another technical issue because now you’re talking about legal jurisdictions.”

Mr Turnquest, in leading off the 2020-2021 budget debate, said the VAT Act will be changed “to clarify that all e-commerce operators are required to register for VAT, whether they provide their services through an agent or directly to consumers. Although this had always been implicit within the VAT Act, we thought it best to clarify the requirement given that the footprint of digital commerce will continue to expand in the domestic economy”.

training is being run out of the Office of the Prime Minister in Grand Bahama, and also in conjunction with the Fulbright programme out of the US. BTVI (Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute) will also be assisting us with conducting the on-site training, and there is a Fulbright scholar who is going to be travelling once the country opens up. They will be travelling to assist us with doing the training as well.”

Mr Thompson added that the app development programme has been “having some very, very good discussions with CISCO, and we are very close to reaching an agreement with them for a software development programme. After those

persons have been trained in software development, they will be open to finding work with respect to software development in CISCO networks”.

“As you know, with software development, you don’t actually have to physically be there to develop the software,” Mr Thompson said. “You can be here in The Bahamas, and be doing software development work for companies all around the world. So that’s one of the opportunities we are working on.

“We believe there is going to be some good opportunities for Bahamians, particularly Grand Bahamians, for the construction industry and the technology industry as well.”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 3

Taxi driver fury on Govt ‘aggressively new ‘road blocks’ pursuing’ GB airport

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net FURIOUS taxi drivers yesterday slammed the Road Traffic Department (RTD) for shutting down efforts to resume business at Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) following the restart of inter-island domestic travel.

Wesley Ferguson, the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union’s (BTCU) president, told Tribune Business: “Things are not going good. I’m just trying to reach back out to the minister (Renward Wells, minister with responsibility for transport) right now.

“On Monday, the Road Traffic Department came, even though they were very visibly absent in all of the meetings that we had to put strategies in place with the major stakeholders to reopen the economy so taxi drivers could start working. [They have] this issue with the emergency order, where taxi drivers were told Monday they were not a part of the emergency order and that the emergency orders only went out to private citizens.”

“So I called the minister in front of the road traffic supervisors, and he

reiterated to them that the emergency orders include taxi drivers. Because they felt like they lost that round, they went back to the office now to say the emergency order includes you but you can’t work under the emergency orders. You can ride around and do your own personal business. So they disregarded what Mr Wells said in front of me to them.”

Mr Ferguson said he was uncertain as to the legal basis the Road Traffic Department has for its actions. “Because the emergency orders did not spell out any fine details, they went back and found another route around stopping taxi drivers from working,” he argued.

“They took another route and decided that taxi drivers can ride around and can be on the road, but taxi drivers can’t work and they can’t apply for hire. So they interpreted the emergency order to suit their purpose so they can stop taxi drivers from working after we have been shut down for so long.

“On Monday they allowed the taxi drivers to work, because I got the minister on the phone and the minister was able to clear it up in front of them,” Mr Ferguson added, “but it was not clear enough with them so they went

back Monday evening or early yesterday morning to strategise. Now they are interpreting the emergency orders to say that taxi drivers cannot work.”

Mr Ferguson said drivers were warned they would receive a traffic ticket if they were found working or on the road without permission. He added that he yesterday asked drivers to return home until the situation was clarified, saying: “I’m going to shut this thing down, because the minister is not clear enough or is not instructing the Road Traffic Department on what are the fine prints in the emergency order.”

The taxi union chief blasted Bradley Sands, the Road Traffic Department’s controller, for “orchestrating” the situation and accused the official of “ducking” him. Tribune Business calls to Mr Sands, both at the Road Traffic Department and on his cell phone, were not answered or replied to by press time.

Mr Wells yesterday told assembled media outside the Cabinet Office that he had to seek instruction from his ministerial colleagues on how to respond to the issues involving the taxi drivers.

Air travellers adjust to COVID protocols

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net BAHAMIAN airlines yesterday said travellers have been “receptive and understanding” of the new COVID-19 health measures following inter-island domestic travel’s Monday restart.

Sherrexcia “Rexy” Rolle, Western Air’s vice-president of operations and general counsel, told Tribune Business: “Flights resumed yesterday [Monday] and we were glad to see familiar faces.

People were receptive and understanding to the new policies.

“As expected, there were a number of individuals eager to return to their desired destination. Our team has implemented additional cleaning procedures and has been working consistently to ensure the aircraft and various waiting areas are maintaining a clean, sanitary and safe environment.”

CALIFORNIA TECH CEO CHARGED IN CORONAVIRUS TEST FRAUD CASE SAN FRANCISCO Associated Press THE president of a Silicon Valley medical technology company was charged yesterday with misleading investors by falsely claiming the company had developed a governmentapproved blood test for the new coronavirus — the first criminal securities fraud prosecution related to the COVID-19 pandemic, federal officials said.

Mark Schena, the president of Arrayit Corporation, was charged with one count of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud after authorities said his company billed Medicare $69m for coronavirus and unnecessary allergy tests.

Schena did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Schena, 57, touted that the company based in Sunnyvale had the only laboratory in the world that offered “revolutionary microarray technology” that allowed it to test for allergies and the coronavirus with the same finger-stick test kit, prosecutors said.

Ms Rolle added: “As we’ve shared on our social media, we encourage passengers to review our flight guide to know what to expect when travelling, and tips on how to keep themselves and others safe.

“Those tips include frequent hand washing; keeping the required mask on, including on boarding the aircraft; having air vents pointed directly below and not to the side and, of course, if you are unwell or displaying symptoms such as coughing, sneezing etc, please travel at another time when you are well.

Change in reservations can still be done with no penalties or fees.”

Lori Roach, director of Golden Wings Charter, added: “We started off with two flights on Monday. It’s going well. We’re taking bookings and we have quite a few lined up for this week and next week.

“It’s fine now because the permit system has slackened a little bit. We only

need permits now to go to the US, so inter-island travel operates as normal.”

The Ministry of Tourism and Aviation, in a statement issued yesterday, said: “In accordance with the government’s phased reopening plan, interisland domestic travel has resumed across the islands of The Bahamas. Travel by commercial flight, as well as mailboat, passenger ferry, domestic pleasure craft and yachts, is permitted across all islands.

“All persons intending to travel domestically within The Bahamas are required to complete a Travel Health Card application prior to departure. Travellers can visit travel.gov.bs to complete the form online. This is an important step for contact tracing purposes.

In the coming weeks, The Bahamas will continue preparing to reopen the country’s borders for international travel, which is expected on July 1.”

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394 NOTICE IN THE ESTATE OF RONALD ANTHONY ROBERTS late of the Settlement of Spanish Wells, St. George’s Cay in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, Deceased IT IS HEREBY NOTIFIED, for the information of those it may concern, that all persons having any claim or demand against the above Estate are required to send the same to the undersigned on or before the 1st day of July, A.D. 2020 and if so required by notice in writing from the undersigned to come in and prove such demand or claim or in default thereof be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made before such debts are proved; AND NOTICE is hereby given that all persons indebted to the said Estate are requested to settle their respective debts at the Chambers of the undersigned on or before the date hereinbefore mentioned.

Dated the 10th day of June, A.D. 2020 CALLENDERS & CO. Chambers, One Millars Court, P.O. Box N-7117, Nassau, The Bahamas

Attorneys for the Personal Representative

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE government is “aggressively pursuing” the Grand Bahama International Airport’s (GBIA) acquisition as a “high priority” for the island’s economic revival, a Cabinet minister reiterated yesterday.

Kwasi Thompson, minister of state for Grand Bahama, told reporters outside the Cabinet Office that “it remains an unacceptable position for the Government” that the airport’s current owners are unwilling to restore the island’s major aviation gateway to international standards following the devastation inflicted by Hurricane Dorian.

Grand Bahama Airport Company, a subsidiary of Freeport Harbour Company, is owned 50/50 by a joint venture involving Hutchison Port Holdings and the Grand Bahama Port Authority’s (GBPA) Port Group Ltd affiliate.

The Hong Kong-based conglomerate has management control.

“Hutchison indicated that they were not intending on rebuilding the airport to the state that it was in prior to Dorian. This obviously was unacceptable for the government, and it remains an unacceptable position for the government,” Mr Thompson said.

“We entered into talks with Hutchison. The talks were slightly delayed as a result of COVID-19. We have continued those talks.

We are actively in discussions with them, actively in negotiations with Hutchison with respect to the turnover of the airport. The airport is a high priority for the government. No island, particularly an island that is in the process of rebuilding,

can do so without an active airport.”

Tribune Business previously reported that the government and Hutchison/GBPA were discussing a deal that would see the two joint venture partners receive $1 each for their respective 50 percent equity stakes in the airport. However, both would be allowed to retain the Dorian-related insurance settlement proceeds, leaving the government to both finance the airport’s rebuilding and find a management partner to operate it.

Mr Thompson added: “One thing I will say is that the airport presently is open. There is a temporary structure that is in place.

Prior to COVID-19 there were international flights that were coming in, domestic flights were coming in.

“So the airport is active for domestic flights coming in. We expect that when the country opens up fully for international flights that the temporary facility will also accommodate those international flights.

But we understand that it is not an acceptable position for Grand Bahama to be in for any long period of time.

We are going to continue to aggressively push with Hutchison to arrive at an acceptable agreement with respect to the airport.”

Responding to concerns that the costs associated with the airport’s reconstruction may be too rich for the government given its present fiscal difficulties, Mr Thompson said: “Obviously it is a very challenging situation for the government at present, given the difficulties we have faced with COVID-19, but it is a position that we have to aggressively pursue.

“I think if we want to fully rebuild the island, the airport is a high priority for the government, and so

we are going to continue to aggressively pursue it. One thing that we have to recognise is the airport really has been damaged a number of times by several hurricanes, and so any position with respect to the airport will require a complete reassessment of the property where it’s at now; a reassessment of how you are going to rebuild it.

“If we are going to rebuild, it must be rebuilt in a resilient way. It does not make sense for us to rebuild what was there before because we have learned that in that situation it is likely to be destroyed again if another hurricane comes.

We have to look at how we are going to rebuild it and rebuild it resiliently.”

Refusing to put any timeline on when negotiations may be completed, Mr Thompson said: “I think if you put timelines in then you risk really having the best possible deal that you can for the Bahamian people.

“So we are, at the moment, satisfied that there is a temporary facility there, and there are domestic flights still coming. We expect that international flights are going to come, and so we are going to aggressively pursue the negotiations as best we can.”

PAGE 4, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

Insurers: COVID order ‘too restrictive to trade’ FROM PAGE ONE co-ordinated through the BIA and Insurance Commission, the industry regulator.

“The government has issued certain mandates,” he said. “I cannot say much more other than that there have been conversations with the government on our concerns around how the mandates are laid out.

They seem to be receptive to them.”

Mr Ward confirmed that the uncertainty surrounding when the emergency powers will end, and fears that this will drag into peak hurricane season with all the implications for cash flow and reinsurance treaties, was “one element” of the property and casualty sector’s fears.

“I think I can say without fear of contradiction that most, if not all, participants in the insurance sector willingly offer terms to clients where they need premium holidays,” he added.

THE TRIBUNE

Accountants bracing for insolvency ‘spike’ FROM PAGE ONE newspaper that pressures from creditors, such as bank lenders, and the reluctance of shareholders and directors to inject the new capital necessary for a company’s survival, are also likely to be key factors driving an increase in insolvency, winding-up and administration work.

“One has to believe with respect to insolvencies, and restructuring businesses, which includes liquidation and receiverships, that there will be a spike in that business for several reasons,” the Baker Tilly chief told Tribune Business.

“One will be the natural failure of companies due to

the pandemic. Two, because of the shutdown, the Boards of many corporate entities will be conducting evaluations and they may decide it will not be best to continue and that maybe they should exit their business.”

Acknowledging that numerous liquidations, or company winding-ups, may be voluntary in nature as opposed to court-supervised or forced, Mr Gomez said: “We expect to see both types of liquidation. I think it’s not going to be within the next few days because we’re not sure how long the pandemic will continue.

“But I expect that within the next two to three months decisions will be made in many Board rooms among directors,

shareholders and creditors about continuing a number of business entities, and whether to continue supporting the business or put it into liquidation or otherwise.

“There may be a number of defaults with the bank, and the bank puts a number of entities into receivership.

These are things not yet known, as we don’t know where we are in business and business processes.

While we’re trying to get back to work, the pandemic is still here and it’s uncertain how long it will last.”

Kendrick Christie, the Crowe (Bahamas) accountant and partner, told Tribune Business that his firm had already been contacted by “a lot of clients crying about cash flow management” and seeking advice on how to restructure and reorganise their companies as they and the economy aimed to revive following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.

He pointed to the failures of prominent, decades-old Bahamian companies such as Taylor Industries and Cavalier Construction as an indication that not all was well with the economy pre-COVID-19, with the economy last year expanding by just 1.5 percent.

“I think you are going to see a number of restructurings and reorganisations.

There will definitely be an uptick, no doubt about that,” Mr Christie said. “A lot of businesses are asking

Businessman hails end to COVID travel permit’s ‘nightmare’ FROM PAGE ONE what a mess that will be if aviation was trying to validate health signed off on it, as they won’t otherwise let you on the plane.

“It caused us to miss two weeks of business because

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KENDRICK CHRISTIE

PHILIP GALANIS

for help with that, bringing in new money and investors. We do anticipate some closures before the end of the year.

“Before this [COVID-19] happened there were issues, but I think it will be a wait and see if the economy rebounds with the opening on July 1. If tourism picks up, there may be some relief.”

Mr Christie added, though, that The Bahamas’ re-opening coincides with the traditionally slower part of the tourism season when some businesses close for a month or two.

He added that some companies may try and hang on to see whether the tourism rebound is sufficiently strong enough to generate the revenues and cash flow required to keep them operational.

Philip Galanis, principal of HLB Galanis & Company, told Tribune Business he was “hoping we don’t” see a surge in insolvencies and corporate restructuring because “it

means companies are in severe trouble, and facing enormous difficulties that threaten their ability to be going concerns”.

He added: “I’m hoping we don’t get a lot of that business, but there are a lot of companies that have tremendous cash flow issues and therefore we are likely to see that increase.” Mr Galanis said banks and other creditors were likely to be a major source of receivership work for the accounting profession, while shareholders will want to ensure their investment is “run in an effective way”.

“I’m hoping we don’t get too many of them,” he reiterated. “While it’s good for liquidators and receivers, it’s not good for business, and does not portend well for the economy either as it means companies are struggling to continue as going concerns. For the most part creditors are so far exercising a degree of forbearance, and hoping the economy turns around.”

we couldn’t get the approvals; they couldn’t get it co-ordinated.” Mr Myers said his firm also had work in Abaco and Exuma during that period.

Dr Hubert Minnis, in unveiling the initial COVID19 health card, said: “This policy and protocol will require individuals to register with the Ministry of Health by emailing covid19travel@ bahamas.gov.bs or calling 511. Individuals must also submit to an evaluation by a Ministry of Health authorised physician in the public or private sector.

“The evaluation will include a risk assessment via a questionnaire to determine the individual’s level of risk for COVID-19 infection, plus

or minus a physical exam to determine the presence of any symptoms consistent with COVID-19.”

He continued: “If deemed a low risk and the physical exam does not reveal any symptoms, it is expected that the person will be issued a COVID-19 Authorisation Travel Card that will allow travel to the Family Island. If the individual is deemed a higher risk or has symptoms that may be consistent with COVID-19, the individual will be referred for testing to definitively determine their COVID-19 status.”

This was then altered just two weeks later to “completing a standardised travel form and a standardized health form at the time of check-in”.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 5

Oil explorer: Uruguay licence ‘won’t distract’ from Bahamas FROM PAGE ONE focus, which is The Bahamas. We have a rig contract, an oil services contract and equipment that is in place.

We’re ready and willing to commence drilling a well as soon as we possibly can after the back-end of hurricane season. It’s [the Uruguay licence] not going to interfere with that process. We’re very clear on that.

“We are absolutely 100 percent focused on delivering the Perseverance well. We have been at this for so long that the scale, nature and maturity of the opportunity, and the fact we’ve signed a binding rig contract that is binding on

Doctors Hospital in ‘second record’ before COVID-19 FROM PAGE ONE “Based on the introduction of a primary care outpatient service offering and cost improvement measures, losses narrowed from $724,949 in financial year 2019 to $504,245 in financial year 2020, representing an improvement of 30.4 percent year-over-year.”

Total admissions to Doctors Hospital’s main Shirley Street facility fell by more than 700 patients year-overyear, dropping from 4,634 to 3,870, due to “less acute emergency room patients requiring hospitalisation, and a decline in patient activity from the Turks and Caicos Islands”.

Still, the company’s annual report added: “For financial year 2020, net patient services revenue increased $5.968m or 9.8 percent versus the prior year.... driven in part by a sharp increase in emergency room visits, which was associated with an increase in revenues of $1.193m or 13.3 percent versus the prior year.

“In financial year 2020, emergency room revenues were $8.97m. Emergency room visits grew from 10,515 in 2019 to 13,645 in 2020, a rise of 29.7 percent.” Doctors Hospital was planning for $2m in capital expenditure in the current financial year prior to COVID-19.

us and the rig contractor, means we are ready to go there.”

Perseverance is the name BPC has given to the first well it plans to spud in Bahamian waters, which will be located over 100 miles south-west of Andros near the maritime border with Cuba. With COVID-19 putting paid to the company’s plans to drill in the 2020 first half, Mr Potter said the government had requested it further delay until near year-end when hurricane season has officially ended.

BPC is now seeking “clarification from the government” that its licence, containing an obligation to spud an exploratory well before year-end 2020,

can be extended beyond that date until “at least June 2021”. While no official confirmation has been received from the Minnis administration, Mr Potter yesterday suggested this was likely to be a formality.

“We’ve had an acknowledgement that it’s been received, but I think the government quite understandably is focusing on other things and getting all the bits and pieces together to combat COVID-19,” he told this newspaper. “The licence and regulations are very clear about force majeure, and very specific on pandemics.

“It’s very perfunctory under the licence and regulations that force majeure applies in this context. It’s

a very simple extension to the licence, recognising the scale of the disruption the company and others around the world are experiencing in troubled times.”

Mr Potter said the initial four-year Uruguayan exploration licence enables BPC to conduct the same seismic testing and subsea rock structure investigations it performed in The Bahamas to determine the likelihood of commercial oil quantities being present and de-risk drilling activities.

He added that Uruguay provided “a complementary set of assets” to its Bahamas ambitions, with the South American nation’s rock structures largely formed from sandstone and similar to those found in the “hot

bed of oil exploration” that is currently Guyana. By contrast, rock structures on The Bahamas’ seabed are mainly carbonates.

Explaining that BPC’s Bahamian and Uruguayan activities will operate “in parallel” to one another, Mr Potter said the company’s four licence areas in the southern Bahamas - covering 12,000 square kilometres - are similar in size to the 15,000 square kilometres covered by its South American licence. Water depths are also similar.

He added that oil drilling in Bahamian waters will not coincide with similar activity off Uruguay, as the four-year licence does not include such actions. The BPC chief, though, said the

company’s activities in The Bahamas had likely helped it both qualify, and bid, for the Uruguay. “No doubt our actions in The Bahamas helped us in the qualifying process,” Mr Potter said.

Reiterating that low global oil prices have no impact on BPC’s plans, he added that the company’s ability to be “nimble, forward looking and opportunistic” had helped to secure its Uruguay expansion. Mr Potter conceded that in a stronger oil market the company would likely have been “outbid or precluded from operating in Uruguay”.

“We feel we acted swiftly, acted decisively in this time to expand our portfolio,” Mr Potter said.

Libya’s oil company says largest oil field shut down again CAIRO Associated Press A UNIT affiliated with Libya’s east-based forces that have been trying to capture Tripoli but are now on the retreat, ordered the country’s largest oil field to halt work just hours after it restarted operations, the national oil company said yesterday.

Armed groups stopped oil production at the Sharara field on two occasions in just 24 hours, the corporation said. Hours after one military commander allowed the oil to start flowing again, another group stormed the field and shut the valves.

The company said that force majeure — a contract clause that refers to the inability of the company to meet its obligations because of extraordinary events — remains in effect.

The dizzying series of developments in Libya’s oil fields come after militias allied with the UN-government in the Libyan capital, backed by Turkey, gained the upper hand in the fighting last week. The militias retook the capital’s airport, all main entrance and exit points to the city and a string of key towns near Tripoli, forcing rival Libyan forces commanded by Khalifa Hifter to pull out.

Hifter has waged a yearlong campaign trying to

NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that PAULA BLACQUIERE, Charlotteville Lot #14, CB-11524 Nassau, New Providence, The 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 and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 10th day of June, 2020 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

capture the Libyan capital, with thousands killed in the fighting, including civilians, and tens of thousands displaced.

The National Oil Corporation said Brig. Mohammed Khalifa, the commander of the oil facilities guard force in the country’s south, which answers to Hifter, disrupted operations at the Sharara oil field, about 900 kilometers (560 miles) south of Tripoli.

It said it instructed the employees to reject “any military orders” regarding the operating and the maintenance of the field. Two engineers at the field said they had halted operations early yesterday, and the field had shut down. Later, an oil engineer said that production had resumed, only to be cut off once again. They

spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the media.

On Monday, the Tripoli-allied forces advanced toward the strategic coastal city of Sirte, which has been in Hifter’s hands since last year and represents the gateway to oil facilities in Libya’s south.

The oil company had previously announced the resumption of production at the Sharara field, following negotiations with the tribes to end its closure, in place since January. Production also resumed on Monday in the al-Feel oil field, it said.

Sharara was to restart at a capacity of 30,000 barrels a day, with an expected return to full capacity, around 290,000 barrels a day, within

three months.

Yesterday’s shutdown marked the 20th time that production at Libya’s largest oil field has been disrupted since the beginning of the NATO-backed uprising and civil war erupted in Feb. 2011, said Hamish Kinnear, Middle East and North Africa analyst at Verisk Maplecroft.

The reopening of the field was the first major challenge to Hifter’s forces in the area, he said.

“Should Sirte fall, the (Government of National Accord) will be able to advance into the oil crescent — whose ports and oil fields account for the lion’s share of Libya’s oil production and exports,” he said.

Oil, the lifeline of Libya’s economy, has long been a

key factor in the civil war, as rival authorities jostle for control of oil fields and state revenue. Libya has the ninth largest known oil reserves in the world and the biggest oil reserves in Africa.

Hifter’s forces have painted their recent defeats as tactical measures to give the UN-backed peace process a chance. But the Tripoli-allied militias said Monday they were determined to take Sirte, once a stronghold of the Islamic State group in Libya.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com

(242) 323-2330

TUESDAY, 9 JUNE 2020

(242) 323-2320

ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE: 2,137.05 | CHG: -0.19 | %CHG: -0.01 | YTD: -94.55 | YTD%: -4.24 BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.45 22.65 7.00 6.75 2.58 2.00 5.47 12.77 6.16 4.50 10.30 3.64 5.10 10.88 8.15 16.99 9.40 4.25 15.21

52WK LOW 3.35 20.91 5.50 5.39 1.78 0.67 2.00 10.21 5.60 3.62 5.41 2.53 1.85 8.00 7.01 13.04 6.98 3.20 13.90

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

SYMBOL AML APD BPF BWL BOB BBL CAB CIB CHL CBL CBB CWCB DHS EMAB FAM FBB FIN FCL JSJ

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Fidelity Bank Class A Focol Class B

CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA FBBA FCLB

PREFERENCE SHARES

1.00 10.00 1.00

1.00 10.00 0.90

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00

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

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)

LAST CLOSE 3.55 17.43 6.00 6.68 1.78 1.62 3.00 11.26 6.10 4.00 6.01 3.30 5.10 10.08 8.00 14.50 8.97 4.00 15.20

CLOSE 3.55 17.43 6.00 6.68 1.78 1.62 3.00 11.26 6.10 4.00 6.01 3.21 5.10 9.95 8.00 14.50 8.97 4.00 15.20

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -0.09 0.00 -0.13 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 0.90

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 0.90

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

VOLUME

VOLUME

EPS$ 0.239 0.932 1.760 0.369 0.070 0.000 -0.438 0.722 0.449 0.184 0.140 0.102 0.467 0.646 0.728 0.816 0.939 0.203 0.631

DIV$ 0.170 1.260 0.000 0.260 0.000 0.020 0.000 0.720 0.220 0.120 0.000 0.434 0.060 0.328 0.240 0.540 0.200 0.120 0.610

P/E 14.9 18.7 N/M 18.1 N/M N/M -6.8 15.6 13.6 21.7 42.9 31.5 10.9 15.4 11.0 17.8 9.6 19.7 24.1

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

YIELD 4.79% 7.23% 0.00% 3.89% 0.00% 1.23% 0.00% 6.39% 3.61% 3.00% 0.00% 13.52% 1.18% 3.30% 3.00% 3.72% 2.23% 3.00% 4.01% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST Prime + 1.75%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2022

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%

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

YTD% 12 MTH% 1.04% 3.87% 0.61% 2.93% 0.50% 2.50% -1.34% 2.23% -12.71% -5.79% 0.94% 3.72% -3.46% 2.09% -0.11% 3.43% -3.33% 1.53% -0.32% 10.20% -1.58% 15.37% 0.88% 5.22% -4.91% 10.77% 1.89% 6.75% -1.95% 0.38% N/A N/A -10.90% -4.30% -18.80% -12.00%

NAV Date 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 27-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.31 4.40 2.10 198.39 168.29 1.67 1.85 1.76 1.24 8.34 10.26 7.00 12.15 12.58 10.81 10.00 8.98 11.79

52WK LOW 1.67 3.30 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.61 1.75 1.70 1.14 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund Leno Preferred Income Fund Leno Growth Fund Leno Diversified Fund Leno 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

NAV 2.31 4.39 2.10 192.52 145.55 1.67 1.79 1.75 1.16 8.31 10.07 7.00 11.42 12.58 10.52 N/A 8.31 10.01

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 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225 | BENCHMARK 242-326-7333

31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020 31-Mar-2020

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, June 10, 2020, PAGE 7

PAGE 8, Wednesday, June 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-Day Forecast

TODAY

ORLANDO

High: 92° F/33° C Low: 75° F/24° C

TAMPA

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

Variable clouds with a thunderstorm

A shower early; turn‑ ing clear

Breezy in the a.m.; clouds and sun

Periods of sun, a t‑storm in spots

Cloudy with a couple of showers

Cloudy with a shower or t‑storm

High: 86°

Low: 74°

High: 86° Low: 75°

High: 86° Low: 75°

High: 86° Low: 76°

High: 86° Low: 76°

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

95° F

75° F

92°-75° F

94°-80° F

93°-81° F

95°-80° F

High: 92° F/33° C Low: 78° F/26° C

The exclusive AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature® is an index that combines the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine intensity, cloudiness, precipitation, pressure and elevation on the human body—everything that affects how warm or cold a person feels. Temperatures reflect the high and the low for the day.

N

almanac

E

W

ABACO

S

N

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 77° F/25° C

4‑8 knots

S

High: 89° F/32° C Low: 79° F/26° C

6‑12 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE

FREEPORT

High: 89° F/32° C Low: 77° F/25° C

E

W S

E

W

WEST PALM BEACH

N

uV inDex toDay

TONIGHT

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 78° F/26° C

MIAMI

High: 89° F/32° C Low: 76° F/24° C

4‑8 knots

Statistics are for Nassau through 2 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 86° F/30° C Low .................................................... 79° F/26° C Normal high ....................................... 87° F/30° C Normal low ........................................ 74° F/23° C Last year’s high ................................. 90° F/32° C Last year’s low ................................... 81° F/27° C Precipitation As of 2 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.00” Year to date ............................................... 20.50” Normal year to date ................................... 10.08”

ELEUTHERA

NASSAU

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 74° F/23° C

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2020

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 78° F/26° C

N

KEY WEST

High: 88° F/31° C Low: 81° F/27° C

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 78° F/26° C

N

S

E

W

4‑8 knots

S

4‑8 knots

ANDROS

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Low

Ht.(ft.)

Today

12:17 p.m. ‑‑‑‑‑

High

Ht.(ft.)

2.3 ‑‑‑‑‑

6:22 a.m.

6:18 p.m.

0.1 0.3

Thursday

12:38 a.m.

1:11 p.m.

2.8 2.2

7:12 a.m.

7:12 p.m.

0.2 0.5

Friday

1:28 a.m.

2:07 p.m.

2.6 2.2

8:02 a.m.

8:10 p.m.

0.3 0.7

Saturday

2:20 a.m.

3:02 p.m.

2.5 2.3

8:51 a.m.

9:09 p.m.

0.4 0.8

Sunday

3:11 a.m.

3:55 p.m.

2.3 2.3

9:38 a.m. 0.4 10:07 p.m. 0.8

Monday

4:03 a.m.

4:45 p.m.

2.3 2.5

10:24 a.m. 0.4 11:02 p.m. 0.7

Tuesday

4:52 a.m.

5:31 p.m.

2.2 2.6

11:07 a.m. 0.3 11:53 p.m. 0.6

sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset

6:19 a.m.

7:59 p.m.

Moonrise Moonset

none 10:52 a.m.

Last

New

First

Full

Jun. 13

Jun. 21

Jun. 28

Jul. 5

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 77° F/25° C

High: 84° F/29° C Low: 78° F/26° C

N

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 78° F/26° C

E

W S

LONG ISLAND

tracking map H

tiDes For nassau

CAT ISLAND

E

W

The higher the AccuWeather UV IndexTM number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.

High: 85° F/29° C Low: 78° F/26° C

4‑8 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 85° F/29° C Low: 78° F/26° C

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS

tonight’s lows.

RAGGED ISLAND High: 84° F/29° C Low: 78° F/26° C

High: 84° F/29° C Low: 78° F/26° C

GREAT INAGUA High: 86° F/30° C Low: 78° F/26° C

N W

N E

W

E S

S

6‑12 knots

6‑12 knots

marine Forecast ABACO ANDROS CAT ISLAND CROOKED ISLAND ELEUTHERA FREEPORT GREAT EXUMA GREAT INAGUA LONG ISLAND MAYAGUANA NASSAU RAGGED ISLAND SAN SALVADOR

Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday:

WINDS NE at 6‑12 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots SE at 4‑8 Knots ENE at 6‑12 Knots ENE at 4‑8 Knots ENE at 8‑16 Knots E at 4‑8 Knots E at 6‑12 Knots ENE at 6‑12 Knots ENE at 8‑16 Knots E at 4‑8 Knots E at 7‑14 Knots E at 4‑8 Knots ENE at 7‑14 Knots NE at 6‑12 Knots E at 4‑8 Knots ENE at 4‑8 Knots E at 6‑12 Knots NE at 4‑8 Knots E at 7‑14 Knots E at 4‑8 Knots E at 6‑12 Knots E at 6‑12 Knots E at 6‑12 Knots NE at 4‑8 Knots ENE at 7‑14 Knots

WAVES 2‑4 Feet 3‑5 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑3 Feet 2‑4 Feet 1‑3 Feet 2‑4 Feet 1‑3 Feet 2‑4 Feet 0‑1 Feet 2‑4 Feet 0‑1 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑3 Feet 2‑4 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑3 Feet 3‑5 Feet 0‑1 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑3 Feet

To advertise ALL your LEGAL NOTICES, call The Tribune’s Sales Department

502-2394

VISIBILITY 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 83° F 82° F 85° F 85° F 84° F 82° F 83° F 83° F 84° F 81° F 82° F 84° F 84° F 84° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 86° F 86° F 84° F 83° F 83° F 84° F 84° F 82° F