11082017%20business

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business@tribunemedia.net

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2017

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Mortgage restructurer: ‘We’ve seen men cry’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

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distressed mortgage restructurer that has seen “grown men cry” during its rescue of “many, many” Bahamian homeowners is urging greater participation by commercial banks. Rosel Moxey, Sunshine Holdings’ vice-president of business development, told Tribune Business that the groups’ Gateway Financial vehicle has proven an “integral part of the solution” to the Bahamas’ mortgage crisis. Besides saving the biggest investments many Bahamians will make, Ms Moxey said Gateway Financial’s purchase of non-performing mortgages

* Gateway says ‘endless’ homeowners rescued * Says it’s ‘integral part’ of mortgage crisis solution * Urges more banks to shed delinquent assets was also boosting the economy by freeing up commercial banks to lend again. While declining to provide data on how many homes have been saved, and the total value of mortgages restructured, she described the newly-created distressed market as “a fantastic sector” given its ability to impact the Bahamas at an individual and national level. “Gateway is doing well but, more importantly, our clients have been doing well,” Ms Moxey told Tribune Business. “We have

had the opportunity to restructure many, many loans. “One person, very well known in our community, was one of our earliest success stories. The day we closed [on the purchase of non-performing mortgages], she was supposed to attend court for a vacant possession Order.” Having intervened just in time, Ms Moxey said Gateway was able to restructure the $800 monthly mortgage payments she was unable to meet into an arrangement where principal and interest could be met,

along with homeowners insurance payments that were placed into escrow. The insurance payments proved especially valuable when Hurricane Matthew hit the Bahamas some five months later, with Ms Moxey saying the woman went from the verge of being forced out of her home to the status of “no longer being a client”. “The stories are endless,” the Sunshine Finance executive told Tribune Business. “We have literally seen men cry in our

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$4.5bn oil refinery for Grand Bahama By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Government is said to be “embracing” a potential $4.5 billion oil storage terminal and refinery planned for east Grand Bahama, Tribune Business can reveal. Details of the Oban Energies project are buried in a recent presentation by the Central Bank of the Bahamas, which describes a $1.5 billion first phase investment in a 20 million barrel, “multi-purpose” bulk storage facility for petroleum products.

* OBAN ENERGIES TO REFINE 250,000 BARRELS DAILY * PROJECT ALSO PROPOSES 20M BARREL STORAGE * COMPLETION AT EAST GB SITE EYED FOR 2021 The development, which is expected to be completed in 2021, also involves a 250,000 barrel per day oil refinery. This represents the potential return of oil

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DOWNTOWN CO-CHAIR SUPPORTS ENDING PRINCE GEORGE ‘CHAOS’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Downtown Nassau Partnership’s (DNP) co-chair yesterday backed outsourcing Prince George Wharf’s management, suggesting it would eliminate “chaos” and improve the Bahamas cruise competitiveness. Charles Klonaris, who developed the Elizabeth on Bay plaza with his brothers, told Tribune Business that allowing the private sector to take over operations at this nation’s major cruise port was a potential “catalyst” for downtown Nassau’s revival. Speaking out after this newspaper revealed the Government is in initial talks with Global Port Holdings about taking over Prince George Wharf’s management, Mr Klonaris

CRUISE ships at Prince George Wharf in New Providence.

* SEES MANAGEMENT OUTSOURCE AS CRUISE BOOST * BAHAMAS MUST BE ‘ONE STEP AHEAD OF REGION’ * MOVE COULD BE REDEVELOPMENT ‘CATALYST’ said it was essential that the Bahamas “be at least one step ahead of the Caribbean” when it came to cruise tourism. “I absolutely agree with it,” he said of the potential outsourcing. “I haven’t spoken to the rest of the DNP Board, but my personal view is that setting up proper port management is an essential factor.

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GOV’T CAUSES GB POWER ‘CONCERN’ OVER BUY-OUT By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net GB Power and its majority investor have admitted to “concerns” over the Deputy Prime Minister’s suggestion that the Government will further review the already-approved $35 million buy-out. Archibald Collins, the Bahamian utility’s chief executive, in a recent Tribune Business interview effectively conceded that itself and Emera had been taken aback by K P Turnquest’s comments.

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* DPM REMARKS SEEMED TO ‘REVERSE’ APPROVALS * ‘UNCLEAR VALUE PROPOSITION’ ON URCA OVERSIGHT * ‘BUSINESS CASE’ CALLS FOR EAST, WEST END RENEW Mr Turnquest previously told this newspaper that further “policy decisions” would be taken prior to the

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JUICE DRINK PRODUCERS: ‘IMPOSSIBLE TO COMPETE’ By NATARIO MCKENZIE Tribune Business Reporter nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net BAHAMIAN juice drink manufacturers yesterday said they were still exploring ways to combat the 50 per cent tariff slash for rival imports, one telling Tribune Business: “It’s not difficult to compete; it’s impossible”. Mervin Sweeting Jr, president of Switcha, said: “The challenge now is that it is much more cheaper to purchase the imported products than it is to purchase ours. I wonder if people understand how significant this tariff rate has been on our market. It’s

* WARN BAHAMAS ‘HOSTILE’ TOWARDS MANUFACTURERS * STILL GRAPPLING WITH 50% IMPORT DUTY SLASH * AQUAPURE CHIEF: WE’RE HOLDING, NOT GAINING not difficult to compete; it’s impossible.” The Minnis administration slashed duty on imported fruit drinks to 30 per cent in the 20172018 Budget, having initially intended to eliminate the previous 60 per cent tariff entirely.

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