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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2022
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‘Don’t derail tourism revival with higher electricity costs’ • Industry can ‘ill-afford’ major BPL hike • BHTA chief hopes fuel hedging stays as.... • ‘Power affordable for first time in long time’
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamian tourism industry yesterday warned it “can ill-afford to be derailed” from its post-COVID recovery by a hike in electricity prices which remain “pivotal” to the sector’s global competitiveness. Robert Sands, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) president, in an e-mailed response to Tribune Business inquiries said any increase in Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) bills could disrupt “the balance” that the country’s largest industry is constantly striving to achieve between vacation cost and ensuring visitors receive “value for money”.
ROBERT SANDS
BAHAMAS POWER & LIGHT (BPL) Reacting to Shevonn Cambridge, BPL’s newly-appointed chief executive, effectively confirming that light bills will soon increase, he called for “some type
of fuel hedging” to continue as the strategy introduced by the former Minnis administration had meant “electricity was at affordable levels for the first time in a
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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Coca-Cola supplier just 6-8% behind pre-COVID
Crowdfunder aiming to be ‘next Bamboo Shack’ A BAHAMIAN restaurant entrepreneur yesterday unveiled ambitions to become “the next Bamboo Shack” after raising almost one-third of his minimum $320,000 capital target within the first ten days. Chef Kevin Culmer, founder of Palmdale-based Tropical Gyros, told Tribune Business he was “ecstatic” after some 195 investors committed to investing a collective $104,000 in the five year-old business during the first days of its crowd funding raise via the ArawakX platform. Hitting the $320,000 minimum will enable the restaurant to “hire another 30 people in the next three months” through moving its present Rosetta Street location to a larger nearby premises, expanding to a second location in the Carmichael area and purchasing a food truck. And Chef Culmer disclosed that it will also set the stage for expansion throughout The Bahamas, Caribbean and even into the US via a franchising model. Revealing that its gyros, salads and bowl offerings have already attracted interest from potential partners in Jamaica and Turks & Caicos, as well as the US, he said a successful crowdfunding raise will enable Tropical Gyros to “quicken the pace” of its growth plans. The restaurant is focused on proving its business model is sustainable in The Bahamas first, and that it “can support more than one operation”, before seeking to franchise internationally over the medium term. “It seems to be gaining some momentum, which is good for us,” Chef Culmer said of retail investor response to the ArawakX crowdfunding. “It’s also good for Bahamian entrepreneurs who are hopeful of raising funds. I think it’s already exceeded our expectations. “The whole platform is new to Bahamians, and it’s not necessarily like a BISX-listed company where you will be trading the shares up and down. This is using money to fund expansion and growth potential. The fact we’ve been able to garner that attention and response in the first ten days of the launch, I’m ecstatic and it gives me cautious optimism we will be able to achieve the minimum raise at least.” Tropical Gyros is targeting a minimum capital raise from Bahamian investors of $320,000, with the maximum set at $850,000. “If we can hit the $320,000 that will put us in good stead to get some things done,” Chef Culmer explained. “One of the things we’re planning to do is that we’re challenged with the space we have right now. Like Roy Schneider, the actor who played the main character in the movie, Jaws, said when he first saw the shark: We need a bigger boat.
long time” over the past two years during the COVID-19 pandemic’s peak. Pointing out that factors such as post-COVID “pent-up demand” will not drive the Bahamian tourism industry’s performance for ever, and that price competitiveness versus rival destinations will again become critical to maintaining market share, Mr Sands told this newspaper: “We are 100 percent on the road to recovery. “However, given what we have just been through, and what may lie ahead, we can ill-afford to be derailed by factors such as a significant hike in the cost of electricity which is already a huge expense
L TO R: Kenneth Donathan, vice-president of investor relations, ArawakX; Nadia Butler, chief compliance officer, ArawakX; D’Arcy Rahming Jr, chief technology officer, ArawakX; Chef Kevin Culmer, co-founder, Tropical Gyros; D’Arcy Rahming Sr, chief executive, ArawakX; Michael Turnquest, ArawakX; Winston Rolle, vice-president of equities, ArawakX.
Gov’t won’t back MSC cruise port takeover By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE DEPUTY prime minister yesterday said the Government will not back the acquisition of a controlling ownership interest in the Nassau Cruise Port by a single or group of cruise lines. Chester Cooper, also minister for tourism, investments and aviation, said ahead of the weekly Cabinet meeting that no application has been
submitted to the Government to acquire that 49 percent equity stake. And, even if such a proposal did emerge, the Government “does not wish for any one cruise line, or combination of cruise lines, to own and operate this port”. “That is still the position of our government, and if there’s an application we will consider it appropriately,” he added. However, it is unclear what the Government can do to block any deal given that any MSC purchase of Global Ports Holding will be
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Supermarkets, with freezers, chillers, compressors and air conditioning that must run 24/7, are among the biggest electricity consumers in The Bahamas along with hotels and other manufacturers. “I suppose we’re going to go back to when oil was expensive. Before we were probably paying $1m a month,” the Super Value chief told this newspaper. “We’re probably at $500,000 to $750,000 a month now. If we go back to the order of $1m, I think it has to be figured into the price of goods. It’s like freight. It costs more to do business. It further increases the cost of living. But, of course, we’re
CARIBBEAN Bottling’s president yesterday revealed it is just 6-8 percent behind pre-COVID business levels despite the cost of key raw materials surging by as much as 20-40 percent. Walter Wells told Tribune Business that the Coca-Cola supplier is forecasting that it will complete its full pandemic recovery by 2023 given that this is inextricably tied to hotel occupancies, employment and disposable income - all of which are coming under growing pressure to varying degrees from the cost of living crisis. Speaking as Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) revealed that high global oil prices will likely produce an electricity bill increase later this summer, he hailed the utility’s previous fuel hedging strategy for both lowering energy costs and providing price stability for homeowners and businesses. Electricity bills were totally driven by consumption (volume), and Mr Wells told this newspaper that it had allowed businesses such as his to engage in long-term planning over six-month periods secure in the knowledge that they would not be hit by sudden “gyrations” in energy costs. Caribbean Bottling, as a manufacturer, is a significant energy consumer and there remains significant uncertainty over whether BPL is negotiating - or has secured - a new hedging strategy to minimise the impact of high global oil prices that last night stood at $110.7 and $114.1 per barrel on the West Texas and Brent Crude indices, respectively. “To be quite frank I actually expected it to go up before now given what we’re seeing with the price of fuel,” Mr Wells said of BPL’s fuel charge and overall bills. “There’s an expectation that it will go up as the price of fuel goes up. It doesn’t help our bottom line, and means at some point that businesses like ourselves have to pass a portion on to consumers. “All we’re doing is contributing further to inflation. It’s a fact of life today.
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CHESTER COOPER concluded offshore outside The Bahamas. Mr Cooper’s comments came after Tribune Business reported last week that Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is weighing up whether to make a formal offer to fully acquire Global Ports
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Super Value to ‘duck’ energy hike via solar By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net SUPER Value’s president yesterday said it plans to “duck” any long-term impact from higher Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) prices through the installation of solar power across its business beginning on August 2. Rupert Roberts told Tribune Business he was hoping to slash the supermarket chain’s energy bill for its 13 stores and head office by up to 75 percent while acknowledging that, in the short-term, he may have to endure a return to $1m per month electricity bills. Speaking after BPL indicated that higher fuel
RUPERT ROBERTS costs, coupled with the end of its existing fuel hedging strategy, will increase light bills this summer, Mr Roberts said management are monitoring “how much it jumps up compared to last year”.
• Despite 20-40% raw material cost jump • Forecasts full pandemic recovery in 2023 • BPL fuel hedge stopped price ‘gyrations’