12102020 BUSINESS

business@tribunemedia.net

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020

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Baha Mar returnees increasing to 1,800

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net BAHA Mar has increased the number of staff being brought back for the Grand Hyatt’s December 17 re-opening to 1,800, or 40 percent of its total workforce, the resort’s top executive said yesterday.

Graeme Davis, the Cable Beach mega resort’s president, told Tribune Business that this represented a slight increase on the initial 1,500 figure given when it unveiled its re-opening plans as he reiterated the goal remained to open the SLS Lux and Rosewood properties in the 2021 first quarter Explaining that he did not anticipate a major pick-up in guest bookings until March 2021 or the first quarter’s end, he said: “I don’t expect to see a solid increase until March 2021, and that is

if our key markets in the United States - the COVID -19 surge - declines dramatically, demand continues to pick up and, of course, airlift is there to support it.

“We have been speaking with the airlines, and they are certainly ready to increase airlift as soon as they see the demand as well.” A Nassau Airport Development Company (NAD) executive told Tribune Business yesterday

SEE PAGE 7

Atlantis hopes for ‘take-off’ in 2021

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A SENIOR Atlantis executive yesterday voiced optimism that guest bookings will “take off” in the 2021 first quarter after a slow start to its re-opening that begins today.

Russell Miller, pictured, the Paradise Island mega resort’s executive vice-president of hotel operations, said: “We’re optimistic. It’s going to start out slow, but

then we will gradually build up, so by Christmas and New Year we think we’ll

SEE PAGE 4

Dorian tax breaks extension branded ‘good Xmas gift’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net GRAND Bahama and Abaco businesses yesterday hailed the extension of key Hurricane Dorian-related tax breaks for another six months as “a good present for Christmas”.

Greg La Roda, pictured, the Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce’s president, told Tribune Business that confirmation of the extension to end-June 2021 by newly-appointed minister of state for finance, Senator Kwasi Thompson, was “a big

relief to businesses and consumers on Grand Bahama”.

Disclosing that uncertainty over the extension, and whether the mixture of VAT, import tariff and other

SEE PAGE 7

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Cabinet go-ahead for $1.5bn heritage plan

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

GRAEME DAVIS

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T

HE government has given the go-ahead to a Bahamian investor group aiming to generate $1.5bn in revenues by transforming Nassau’s key heritage sites, a top official revealed yesterday.

Joshua Sears, the prime minister’s senior policy advisor, told Tribune Business that the Cabinet’s National Economic Council (NEC) had earlier this month given its blessing to the Public-Private Investments (PPIL) group’s multi-million dollar proposal to restore and revive sites that include Nassau’s three forts, the Queen’s Staircase (66 Steps) and

• PM’s top advisor confirms local investor group approval • Principals were ‘optimistic’ after ‘doing all we should’ • Original proposal called for up to 1,200 full-time jobs

THE QUEEN’S STAIRCASE Water Tower, and the Pompey Museum.

“What I can say to you is

that the NEC has approved the project, and the operational aspect is now subject

to continued interaction between the Antiquities, Monuments and Museums Corporation (AMMC) and the group,” Mr Sears said.

“That’ll be the next step. There’s been several meetings but it was finally approved about a week ago.” With the government becoming ever more cash-strapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Sears said the hope was that outsourcing these locations to private sector management, capital and maintenance will unlock

SEE PAGE 4

QC urges oil explorer: ‘Meet us on battlefield’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

ENVIRONMENTAL activists last night urged the Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) to “meet us on the battlefield” amid claims its oil spill response plan is insufficiently “offensive”.

Fred Smith QC, the Callenders & Co attorney and partner, urged both the oil explorer and the government not to employ “procedural guerrilla tactics and trench warfare” to halt or bog down the Judicial Review challenge launched by his clients.

The attorney for Waterkeepers Bahamas and the Coalition to Protect Clifton

• Calls on BPC, govt to ‘avoid trench warfare’ • Claim oil spill respone not ‘offensive’ enough • Activist review alleges plan ‘not acceptable’

FRED SMITH QC

Bay (Save the Bays) also confirmed he had sent all filings with the Supreme Court to BPC via its lawyers, Graham, Thompson & Company, after the oil explorer told its shareholders and the London stock market that the case presently amounted to little more than “media speculation”.

Noting reports by this newspaper and others on the Judicial Review’s filing, BPC’s short statement said: “BPC presently has no

further knowledge in relation to this matter. BPC has not been served, and is not aware that the Government of The Bahamas has been served.

“BPC will continue to monitor the situation closely, and will make a further announcement as and when it becomes aware of any material developments.” However, Mr Smith said he had last night made sure BPC was fully aware

SEE PAGE 6

PAGE 2, Thursday, December 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

UNLOCKING THE CREATIVE TRAIT THAT EXISTS IN ALL

D

OES art really inspire the imagination?

If you were to sit in the middle of a white room with no wall art and furniture, would you feel inspired? Well-placed decorations and carefully chosen art pieces are a catalyst for conversation and internal musings.

Human beings have been drawing on cave walls to inspire themselves since the dawn of time, and human brains are wired to appreciate and be inspired by art.

Not all people are the same.

Artists might favour one form of decorating, while an engineer might prefer another.

Art choices are as much a testament to a person’s individuality as they are a springboard for launching new ideas; the artwork selections for a school, office or home can differ wildly. It is best to try to create a space to nurture imagination and creativity to bring greater success to day-to-day life.

Imagination is something totally different from reality. An act of creativity can

be grand and inspiring, such as creating a beautiful painting or designing an innovative new product. But an idea need not be artistic or world-changing to count as creative.

Life requires daily acts of ingenuity and novel workarounds. In this sense, almost everyone possesses some amount of creativity.

Research shows that creative thinking involves making new connections between different regions of the brain, which is accomplished by cultivating divergent thinking

skills and deliberately exposing oneself to new experiences and learning.

While research psychologists are interested in tapping innovative thinking, clinical psychologists sometimes encourage patients to use artistic expression as a way to confront difficult feelings.

It is in everyone’s interest to nurture creative impulses, regardless of your day job. Creativity is also associated with many factors including conducive environments, ideal collaborators, personality traits,

spirituality, and just a hint of serendipity. Finding the right combination of these is not always easy, but the outcomes are well worth it.

Many artists feel they have no or very limited creative ability, and it is true that some are more creative than others. Fortunately, however, creativity can be acquired and honed at any age or experience level.

Children are the greatest natural artists because their minds have not yet been programmed to fit adult standards. Because the world is new to them, they see everything with fresh eyes.

Innovation is not some divine gift. It is the skilled application of knowledge in new and exciting ways. It requires changing a normal routine, stepping outside typical comfort zones, and paying attention to the present moment.

When learning new information, taking a break either by sleeping or simply enjoying a distraction is another way of allowing the unconscious mind to process the data in novel and surprising ways. This often lays the groundwork for a creative insight or breakthrough.

It is my humble view that creativity is what makes human beings unique. It is a treat from nature. It has no association with social status, level of education, race, culture, gender, wealth, mental condition or IQ. Researchers in recent years have sought a greater understanding of how creativity interrelates. For example, the home is a place where you not only recharge for a new day, but also formulate ideas and dream big things that lead to future success. The last place that should be bland is the home.

Everyone has the potential to be creative. What is more, everyone should be creative. There is a

The Art of Graphix

BY DEIDRE M BASTIAN

wonderful book called Your Creative Brain, by Shelley Carson, which explains how we are all creative and how it works. Some people think that they are not creative, or not creative enough, but that is a self-imposed idea.

In a smaller sense, creativity may be better conceived as neither inherently positive nor inherently negative. Instead, it may be best to assess motivations and outcomes when judging the value of any creative act. It takes place in a natural progression from thinking, to producing, and then affecting reality. It involves taking risks, challenging assumptions and seeing things in a new way. Typically, creativity can be viewed as a socially beneficial trait. Until we meet again, fill your life with memories rather than regrets. Enjoy life and stay on top of your game.

NB: Columnist welcomes feedback at deedee21bastian@gmail.com ABOUT COLUMNIST: Deidre M Bastian is a professionally-trained graphic designer/brand marketing analyst, author and certified life coach with qualifications of M.Sc., B.Sc., A.Sc. She has trained at institutions such as: Miami Lakes Technical Centre, Success Training College, College of The Bahamas, Nova Southeastern University, Learning Tree International, Langevine International and Synergy Bahamas.

BAR ‘BLESSED’ TO STILL BE OPERATING

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net A WELL-known sports bar yesterday said it was “blessed” to have remained open throughout the COVID-19 pandemic apart from during the nationwide lockdown.

James Galantis, Twisted Lime’s general manager, told Tribune Business: “We’re doing actually really well. I can say that we are very blessed and that we’re doing what we’re doing pretty well.”

He explained that Twisted Lime had used its outside bar to serve customers cocktails amid the various curfews and other restrictions while complying with the present prohibition on outdoor dining.

Mr Galantis confirmed: “The indoors are not open.

We don’t have a hotel license. The hotels are the only ones that are allowed to open indoors. We have an

outdoor bar that’s open, but then it’s a specific size and we could only fit so many people there. Our indoor bar is for our employees to mix drinks for the person sitting at the tables.”

Calling on all business owners to remain positive despite the hardship inflicted by COVID-19, Mr Galantis added: “We’re a sports bar, so most of our TV’s are inside, and it does affect us. But, again, at the same time, considering the situation, I don’t want to shine a light on the negative because at this moment we’re extremely blessed to have what we have.

“I never closed. I’ve been open from day one right from the jump. We’ve never closed; only where the government had a mandatory shutdown. That’s the only time we closed, otherwise we have been open and we have never closed our doors. This is about love, and hard work is what kept us open.”

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THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 10, 2020, PAGE 3

BTC blasts BPL on power outages

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

COMMONWEALTH BREWERY

Kalik brewer: We’ll retain ‘at least’ 90% of workers

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net COMMONWEALTH Brewery yesterday pledged to retain at least 90 percent of its workforce as the final number of staff to be terminated in the latest redundancy exercise has not been determined.

A source at the Kalik manufacturer, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Tribune Business the BISXlisted brewer was still in the Employment Act-mandated consultation with employees likely to be impacted by the downsizing. They said some may yet be retained depending on the outcome, and it was inaccurate to say the figure of 34 terminations has been settled.

“We have not exhausted that process yet, and we have not determined how many persons will be made redundant, but we will retain about 90 percent of our staff,” the source said.

“All of our business areas are impacted by these redundancies. It will be in the production area in terms of the Brewery and logistics, as well as the marketing area, which includes the arm that involves advertising and our hosted events, along with areas on the commerce side and our supply chain.”

Confirming that a redundancy exercise has been initiated, the BISX-listed brewer said: “Commonwealth Brewery advises the public and its shareholders that the company is completing a restructuring exercise as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Like many companies, Commonwealth Brewery faces significant financial challenges as result of a combination of low tourism numbers, high unemployment and COVID-19 mitigating measures that have all caused a drastic decline in its sales volume.

Nonetheless, the company honoured its commitment

to no COVID-related layoffs in 2020.

“However, it is simply unsustainable to maintain a full staff complement through 2021. The impact to the company’s financial position means that Commonwealth Brewery has to restructure to stabilise its operations, while also positioning itself to rebound in the New Year. A part of that restructuring involves the possible redundancy of less than ten percent of employees.”

The prospect of job losses at a company such as Commonwealth Brewery, which is 75 percent majority-owned by the deep-pocketed Belgian brewer, Heineken, further exposes the devastating impact of COVID-19 on businesses that would normally be considered among The Bahamas’ strongest.

Lockdowns, border closures, curfews and other restrictions have heavily impacted sales to both domestic and international consumers, with Commonwealth Brewery suffering a $3.4m net loss for the first nine months of 2020.

“Net revenue during the third quarter declined by 27.8 percent, while operating expenses reduced by 19.8 percent compared to the third quarter 2019. As a result, we experienced a total comprehensive loss of $766,000, compared to a positive result of $1.68m during the corresponding period of 2019,” the Kalik brewer said of its third quarter performance.

“During the third quarter of 2020, the Government of The Bahamas continued measures to curtail the spread of COVID-19 by instituting additional lockdowns, curfews and limitations on social gatherings.

These factors contributed to a less than favourable third quarter for the company given that commercial activities were limited due to the factors described and the

strain on consumer’s disposable income.

“Commonwealth Brewery’s management has been able to achieve financial stability through early actions taken during the first quarter of the year by increasing short-term financing. This proved pivotal to Commonwealth Brewery’s ability to navigate periods of lockdown during which revenue has severely reduced due to the halt of economic activity. This short-term financing strategy has been sustainable through the third quarter with the company not requiring further financing.”

Commonwealth Brewery underwent a redundancy exercise as recently as early 2019, when it released 73 employees from its 700 Wines and Spirits retail division. This included 53 from their New Providence stores, with the remaining 20 coming in Grand Bahama.

Yesterday’s released said: “In accordance with the Employment Act, the company notified the minister of labour of its position and is in the midst of a consultation process with these employees. All employees who may be made redundant will be paid their full salary and benefits into the New Year.

“In fact, Commonwealth Brewery is firmly committed to handling the entire exercise with respect, transparency, speed and support to those who may be impacted. Since the start of the crisis, the company has implemented a number of cost saving measures that has lessened the impact to its team.

“Those cost saving measures have allowed the company to retain more than 90 percent of its team members who will be instrumental in helping Commonwealth Brwery position itself for recovery and growth and 2021.”

THE Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) has complained that frequent outages and poor power quality have increased its costs and led to the “rapid failure” of critical equipment.

The communications provider, which is 49 percent owned by the government, took a swipe at its fellow state-owned utility in demanding that the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) impose key performance indicators (KPIs) on Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) in similar fashion to what other Caribbean nations have done.

Participating in URCA’s consultation on consumer protection regulations for the energy sector, the regulator said of BTC’s response: “BTC thought it to be an opportune time for URCA to take steps towards improving the service levels as it relates to power reliability and power quality provided by the service provider to customers......

“BTC advanced that its cost for providing services had increased due to frequent outages, and suggested the use of the approach found in the electronic communications sector or the model implemented in Barbados to place BPL on a glide path to industry standard power reliability in the near future.

“BTC noted that the electricity sector consumer protection regulations focus on quality of service as it relates to customer service and satisfaction however advanced the overall customer experience is shaped by the quality of power delivered.

“Further, BTC advanced that inconsistent and poor power supply has led to

rapid deterioration or failure of its equipment in advance manufacturer recommendations.”

BTC then advocated for the introduction of KPIs such as System Average Interruptions Duration Index (SAIDI); System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI); and Customer Average Interruption Duration Index (CAIDI), all of which have been introduced in Barbados. However, URCA said the reporting obligations imposed on BPL had already identified the use of such KPIs. Elsewhere, URCA revealed that while it was “sympathetic” to Bahamas Power & Light’s (BPL) plight it could not be allowed to set lower customer service standards for the Family Islands. It sought to ease the stateowned utility’s plight by saying it would provide a “caveat” where any deviation from service standard quality would require its approval.

The regulator’s response came in response to BPL’s arguments that the service standards being imposed on it were “unachievable” in the Family Islands due to the “peculiarities” of providing service in more sparsely populated areas and remote communities.

With BPL effectively calling for two standards to be applied, one for New Providence and a lesser one for the Family Islands, URCA said: “BPL understood and agreed with the need for establishing customer quality of service standards.

“However, BPL suggested that this should be done having regard to the peculiarities of the service area to which the standards shall apply. BPL stated that the Family Islands present particular challenges to the service provider, and renders the standards set out unachievable.

“BPL suggested the deferral of this portion of the regulations to allow the development of a separate document in conjunction with the service provider [itself], which includes separate standards for the Family Islands.”

URCA, in reply, said it disagreed with BPL’s position especially given that the utility’s own “submitted and approved” Consumer Protection Plan made no attempt to differentiate between Nassau and the Family Islands and provided just one uniform standard nationwide.

“URCA does not agree with BPL’s suggestion of deferral and development of a separate document in this regard,” the energy sector regulator replied.

“URCA refers BPL to part nine of its Consumer Protection Plan (CPP) submitted and approved by URCA. “The CPP’s quality of service standards contained therein makes no differentiation for the Family Islands but provide an overall standard applicable to the entire Bahamas. The consumer protection regulations includes an almost mirrored version of these standards.

“Therefore, URCA does not accept the contention

by BPL that the proposed standards are unachievable in the Family Islands when a commitment to these same standards has been made through the CPP.” Having, at least initially, resisted BPL’s efforts to water down customer service standards on the Family Islands, URCA then conceded ground. “URCA is sympathetic to BPL’s contention and will include a caveat to the quality of service standards schedule, which states that any deviation from these standards shall be subject to approval

by URCA,” it added.

“URCA considers that this caveat is reasonable to the end of balancing the interests of all relevant parties. Further, it should allow the service provider to engage with URCA in the event the standards cannot be met.”

PAGE 4, Thursday, December 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Cabinet go-ahead for $1.5bn heritage plan FROM PAGE ONE

their true value for heritage/cultural tourism and Bahamians alike.

“When the proposal was submitted it was thought that these historical sites required an injection of private capital,” he explained.

“The Water Tower, in particular, required substantial investment.

“The overall idea was to improve the sites and make them more attractive and viable to the tourism product, and make the environs of the city of Nassau attractive to Bahamians and visitors alike. It’s a very important part of our cultural history.”

PPIL, which is headed

by Dr Nigel Lewis, as its chairman, and businessman Olvin Rees, now have to finalise the details of an operations and management agreement for the historic sites they will be charged with restoring for the benefit of Bahamians, the wider economy and job creation.

The group already has a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in place with the AMMC, and Mr Rees told this newspaper last summer that it projected the venture could generate $1.5bn in gross revenues over the duration of a 25-year lease along with several hundred jobs.

Both he and Dr Lewis recently told Tribune Business, prior to this

newspaper’s interview with Mr Sears, that PPIL felt confident it had fulfilled everything required of it and was now just awaiting the government’s approval to advance to the the operations and management agreement.

“We’re still waiting on the final signing of the management agreement from the government,” Mr Rees had said. “We haven’t heard from them yet. Hopefully some time in the New Year we may hear something.

“We’re waiting for everything to be finalised. It hasn’t changed. The government has got other priorities right now. We couldn’t do anything with it previously; the pandemic, cruise ships pulling out and tourism going to zero.”

Dr Lewis gave a similar outlook, telling this newspaper: “We are waiting to get some word from the government. I believe we have done everything we should have done. It’s now in the government’s hands.

We’re just waiting for them to tell us when they are ready, and we are very optimistic. We have been waiting, that’s all I can say to you at this time.”

Besides Fort Charlotte, Fort Fincastle and Fort Montague, and the Queen’s Staircase and Water Tower, PPIL was prior to COVID-19 striking - also hoping to take over operational responsibility for the Botanical Gardens,

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Pompey Museum and the National Public Library.

Its aim, via a publicprivate partnership (PPP) arrangement with the Government, was to make all the locations financially self-sustainable by overhauling their appearance, enhancing the visitor experience and “pre-selling” tour packages to both cruise ship passengers and hotel tourists, reversing perceptions that Nassau is “boring” with little of interest to do amid “run down” attractions.

Documents obtained by Tribune Business reveal that PPIL aimed to provide 500 direct permanent jobs, and between 500 to 750 indirect jobs, via the proposed project before COVID-19 intervened to delay progress towards an operations and management agreement.

The papers seen by this newspaper show that the project has now been more than three years in the making, with PPIL quick off the mark to formally approach the Minnis administration with its proposal within three months of it taking office on May 10, 2017.

An August 8, 2017, letter from Dr Lewis to the NEC, which references “earlier and ongoing discussions with various members of the Council”, likely meaning individual Cabinet ministers and officials, initially sought a 30-year lease concession to

manage and operate sites that also included Government House, Heroes Park and Centreville (Collins) House.

Richenda King, the AMMC’s chairman, yesterday confirmed that Government House was not included in the potential sites that PPIL would potentially assume responsibility for although she declined further comment, instead referring Tribune Business to the Prime Minister’s Office.

Dr Lewis’ letter, meanwhile, also suggested the group was interested in developing “guided tours through historical Adelaide, Fox Hill and Gambier Villages” while training local residents to manage and operate them, and creating “an educational heritage experience for all Bahamians”.

“We seek to establish a sustainable world-class heritage experience for tourists and locals (generations of Bahamians) alike, with the full participation of all key stakeholders,” Dr Lewis wrote, committing PPIL to an initial $30m investment and the creation of “multiple entrepreneurial opportunities”.

“This has immediate and long-term positive implications for the government as it seeks to rebrand The Bahamas as a destination, while controlling and constraining its capital budgetary expenditures,” he added.

A draft operations and management agreement between the AMMC and PPIL, which is unsigned and dated from February 2019, states that the investor group will “seek to provide 350 temporary jobs, 500 direct permanent jobs, 500-700 indirect permanent jobs and multiple entrepreneurial opportunities, the economic impact of which is estimated at $1.2bn over 25 years”.

It is uncertain whether these details have, or will, change, with the draft also detailing a “sliding scale” profit sharing agreement where AMMC will receive a 20 percent share at $2m and 45 percent anywhere above $4m.

“PPIL Group views the development of an effective heritage tourism model as critical to any attempt to diversify our economy and strengthen its core tourism product,” the group said in its accompanying business plan.

“This strategy speaks to the development of a ‘signature’ heritage tourism programme to be featured as a cultural focal point for ongoing efforts to preserve The Bahamas’ unique footing as the ‘cultural and geographical jewel of the Caribbean’.”

Few would argue that the sites targeted by PPIL are in serious need of improved management and upgrading. If this can be accomplished, they can play a significant role in

restructuring and enhancing the Bahamian tourism product post-COVID-19, while also monetising Bahamian history and taking the country into the higher margin cultural/heritage tourism niche.

The documents seen

by Tribune Business also include a draft MoU between PPIL and the Public Parks and Beaches Authority for the Botanical Gardens and Heroes Park. It is unclear, though, whether this was signed or if the two assets are still included in the deal.

Shanendon Cartwright, the authority’s chairman, could not be reached for comment yesterday.

PPIL’s business plan, which is dated, named Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, former minister of tourism in the last Ingraham administration, and Michael Maura, then head of BISX-listed Arawak Port Development Company (APD), as members of the investor group.

However Mr Maura, who now heads Nassau Cruise Port, and Mr VanderpoolWallace both confirmed that they only had marginal and temporary connections to PPIL’s plan and are no longer involved. The latter said he backed away because his involvement could have created a “conflict” with another project he was involved with.

Atlantis hopes for ‘take-off’ in 2021

FROM PAGE ONE

be at a good level of occupancies and we’re hoping for the first quarter to take off and be also successful for us.”

Atlantis is recalling around 3,000 staff for today’s partial re-opening following a near nine-month shutdown due to COVID19, with the Royal Towers, The Reef and Harborside timeshare complexes among the facilities that will open first.

Amenities and attractions that will open include the casino, Dolphin Cay marine habitat and its 50,000 aquatic animals, marina, Mandara spa, Ocean Club Golf Course, restaurants such as Nobu and Todd English’s Olives, the Marina Village and Crystal Court

shops. Others will open as and when visitor demand returns to pre-pandemic levels.

With COVID-19 infections in The Bahamas’ key source market, the US, continuing to soar and remain near the 200,000 mark daily, Mr Miller said: “We’re operating under the safety zone concept. So every guest that comes into the country for government protocols will have to have the PCR tests.

“When they check in, we’ll need evidence of the PCR test plus the Travel Visa. But in the bubble, they will not have to have any additional tests. So if they are here beyond five days, they do not require to have the fifth day test. They can enjoy the facilities, all of the amenities we have in place, and just have a great vacation without any additional test requirements.

“When you walk through the property you’ll see that we have a number of

ATLANTIS PARADISE ISLAND sanitising stations set up, and protocols in place for the employees coming back.

It’s been now about four weeks that we’ve started doing this. Every employee from the top level all the way down through the ranks has to have an antigen test on a weekly basis,” Mr Miller added.

“We’ve partnered with Doctors Hospital to do this and, as you know, they have the two locations at Town Centre Mall, and also at Blake Road. So it’s been very easy for us to set it up and schedule our employees and our team members to go there and take the test. I’ve been doing it now for four or five weeks. It’s a very seamless process.

“The test itself is nonevasive, it’s easy, and you’re in and out of either of the locations in five minutes. So all of our employees now

have to do that, as do all of our third party vendors and folks that we work with. It is required that they have the antigen test, and it’s to be done and updated every seven days.”

Some tourism stakeholders, such as Bahamas Taxi Cab Union president, Wesley Ferguson, have argued that the so-called “bubble” model for hotel guests cuts smaller tourism stakeholders out of the business.

However, Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister for tourism and aviation, said the government will continue with the “bubble” model as it has seemed to work well for other jurisdictions in the Caribbean.

He added that larger hotels such as Atlantis and Baha Mar would not have agreed to reopen had the government not approved this.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 10, 2020, PAGE 5

Govt confirms set-off on unemployment benefits THE government last night said furloughed workers still being paid part of their normal salary by employers will not receive the full weekly unemployment benefit in a bid to conserve “scarce resources”.

The Ministry of Finance, in a statement designed to push back against Baha Mar’s assertions that furloughed staff were being treated unfairly through not receiving the full $100 weekly benefit, argued that such statements were “inaccurate”.

Denying that the government was “holding up” unemployment benefits, the ministry explained it had implemented a policy where it was offsetting exgratia payments workers are still receiving from their employers against the $100 benefit.

This means the government-funded unemployment benefit will only make up any difference between employer-funded

payments and the weekly $100 that workers would otherwise receive if they had zero income sources.

The Ministry of Finance added that with COVID-19’s economic fall-out dragging on much longer than anticipated, and tax and other revenue streams down by at least 50 percent compared to pre-COVID-19 levels, it had no choice but to conserve dwindling financial resources while still providing needy Bahamians with much-needed assistance.

“The Ministry of Finance would like to bring clarity to public discourse around payments to the government’s extended unemployment benefit programme based on inaccurate suggestions that payments have been unfairly held up to certain individuals,” it said last night.

Explaining that the government had stepped in to further assist terminated and furloughed

workers after their 13-week National Insurance Board (NIB) unemployment benefit came to an end, the Ministry said some 36,959 persons had received just over a combined $91.9m from the Public Treasuryfunded extension as at end-November 2020.

This initiative is now set to continue through the end of January 2021, and the Ministry of Finance added: “Notwithstanding the fact that the budget for this unemployment assistance had been largely exhausted, and the government’s revenue continued to be very constrained, the government recognised the need to provide additional assistance to individuals given the severity of the circumstances.

“With limited available resources, the government took the policy position that persons in the special unemployment benefit programme would receive income or income support of no less than

$100 per week.

“The difference in this iteration is that persons who work part-time, or who receive ex-gratia or other payments from the employer, would only receive payments from the programme to bring them up to a minimum of $100 in income and/or income support. This approach was taken to ensure that in an environment of scarce public resources, as many people as possible would obtain some measure of assistance.”

To verify that workers qualify under this revised approach, and to determine the sums due to them, the government has required that employers submit the necessary information to NIB. The social security system said the “last major employer” had submitted its list of eligible employees on Tuesday evening.

“The government remains exceedingly grateful to all those employers throughout the country

BAHAMAS ‘DARES’ TO ENTER DIGITAL INDUSTRY THE level of interest from digital asset entrepreneurs in using The Bahamas for token issues and other ventures “mandated” this nation move swiftly on a supervisory regime, a top regulator said yesterday.

Christina Rolle, the Securities Commission’s executive director, said the Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges (DARE) Bill now provides the legal framework for a compliant and well-regulated Fintech (financial technology) sector that is focused on cryptocurrencies and other niche sector.

“The number of queries the jurisdiction has received from entrepreneurs interested in venturing into this form of capital raising has mandated that we ensure legislative and regulatory parameters are in place to address how operators conduct themselves, and how token issues come to market,” she said.

“DARE solidifies a legislative structure with standards for entry into, and participation in, the digital assets space. These requirements stipulate who may participate, the level of capital required, the rules for reporting and seeking the commission’s approval, and the penalties for failure

CHRISTINA ROLLE to comply.”

The Securities Commission, in a statement, said the DARE Bill’s recent passage into law by Parliament has expanded the range of opportunities available for participants in a Bahamian financial services industry that has spent two decades in a slow but steady decline due to multiple tax and international regulatory offensives against it.

Besides providing expansion possibilities for existing institutions via growth in the digital space, the regulator also voiced hope the legislation will either attract Fintech firms to establish a physical presence in The Bahamas or work with companies already here.

In developing the legislative framework for DARE, the Securities Commission examined the status and regulatory environment of

crypto currencies in rival international financial centres (IFCs) such as Switzerland, Hong Kong, Malta and Gibraltar, as well as the US. “We left no stone unturned in analysing what others are doing to ensure DARE creates a digital asset environment that is on par or exceeds what is being offered in other jurisdictions,” said Ms Rolle.

The DARE legislation, which was passed by Parliament on November 3, facilitates the registration of digital token exchanges and the provision of related services. It also provides for the regulation of digital assets-based payment service businesses, and for the registration and licensing of financial services related to the creation, issuance or sale of digital tokens and other digital assets.

During the House debate, the prime minister said a Fidelity Digital Assets’ Institutional Digital Assets Report showed the explosive growth of virtual assets, including virtual currencies, and the need for a jurisdiction such as The Bahamas to equip itself with compliant and competitive legislation to participate in the industry.

“The survey of almost

800 institutional investors across the US and Europe indicated that 36 percent of respondents are invested in digital assets, and that six out of ten believe digital assets ‘have a place in their investment portfolio’,” said Dr Hubert Minnis.

According to the report, over 80 percent of investors indicated they would be interested in institutional investment products that hold digital assets.

“As an international financial centre with a considerable wealth management focus, this trending investor interest speaks to the potential for Bahamasbased wealth management experts to offer financial service related to digital assets,” the prime minister added.

who have provided ex-gratia payments to employees during this time, as well as those many employers who have had employees on fulltime or part-time schedules throughout the pandemic even as the businesses themselves faced extreme commercial challenges,” the Ministry of Finance said.

The issues between the government and Baha Mar over the revised unemployment benefit emerged last month when Brensil Rolle, minister with responsibility for the public service and National Insurance, told Tribune Business the mega resort had failed to supply the government with a list of still-furloughed employees at its Grand Hyatt, SLS and Rosewood brands as well as the Melia Nassau Beach resort.

He explained that the government required this information, which is requested from all other hotels and employers with still temporarily laid-off

staff, so that NIB - which is administering the nowtaxpayer funded benefits - can verify that each worker’s status has remained unchanged.

Explaining that this was done “to cover our backs”, and ensure the government’s scarce resources were directed to those most in need, instead of unemployment benefits going to persons who had gone back to work, Mr Rolle said he was “puzzled” by Baha Mar’s failure to send its employee list.

He also confirmed then that NIB and the government had netted off the 30 percent ex-gratia payment Baha Mar was making to staff against the unemployment benefits they were due, effectively paying the difference.

The Ministry of Finance last night said NIB has todate paid out a collective $97.5m to Bahamian workers impacted by COVID-19 via its 13-week benefits scheme.

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PAGE 6, Thursday, December 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

QC urges oil explorer: ‘Meet us on battlefield’ FROM PAGE ONE

by providing it will all the necessary legal documents.

“The statement by BPC is mischievous and misleading,” the outspoken QC blasted. “BPC is not a party to the proceedings, and the coalition [Mr Smith’s clients] is not obliged to serve BPC with anything.

“However, out of courtesy, because doubtless BPC will ask permission of the court to be heard at the trial, we did provide BPC with notice of the proceedings yesterday via their attorneys and they have today been sent copies of the papers.”

With BPC already demanding “security for costs”, a form of performance bond that the activists would have to lodge to cover the oil explorer’s legal and other expenses if so ordered by the Supreme Court, Mr Smith voiced fears that both the company and the government would seek to stifle the Judicial Review case by employing legal technicalities.

“We hope BPC and the government will not bedevil this case with procedural guerrilla tactics and trench

THE STENA ICEMAX DRILL SHIP warfare,” he told Tribune Business. “We consider we have an excellent case and we invite them to have a trial urgently on the merits.

Meet us on the battlefield.”

Some may argue that the

activists have made it harder for BPC to “meet them on the battlefield” given that the oil explorer has, for the moment at least, not been included as a party to the Judicial Review bid.

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And BPC’s attorneys have already argued that the case for halting exploratory oil drilling in Bahamian waters is “doomed to fail” and very weak. Carl Bethel QC, the attorney general, declined to comment on the Judicial Review filing in a message to Tribune Business.

Meanwhile, an assessment of BPC’s Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) that was carried out for the activists argues that the oil explorer’s pollution/spill response and containment plan is not proactive enough given “the sensitivity and uniqueness” of the marine and land habitats that could potentially be impacted.

Dr William J Rogers, of Omega EnviroSolutions, who has worked on multiple oil and other hazardous waste project assessments and clean-ups, said in his review of BPC’s EIA: “The response strategy to a major spill of monitoring, use of dispersants and beach clean-up is not acceptable considering the sensitivity and uniqueness of the potentially impacted habitats and natural resources.

“They have no plans for oil recovery using oil skimming equipment. They also have no plans for oil booming to protect sensitive areas in the event of a spill. They have not addressed the capacities of Grand Bahama, Cuba or US capabilities or the need for capacity building.”

BPC has argued that its de-risking work over the past ten years has reduced

the chances of any oil spill to the bare minimum. However, Dr Rogers argued in the review seen by Tribune Business: “A detailed offensive interventions spill response plan must be developed to replace the defensive ‘wait-and-see and then clean-up the beaches’ plan.

“There is no discussion on the Incident Command structure other than the first command on the drill rig.

There needs to be a clear process for initial command, and then hand-offs in the event of a large spill. This is not addressed in the EIA or Environmental Management Plan (EMP).

“An offensive plan must include specific strategies to protect sensitive ecological resources and specifically endangered, threatened and vulnerable species and their habitat.”

BPC has previously vigorously defended its EIA on multiple occasions, pointing out that it was assessed and approved by the government’s own agencies as well as the international consultants that it hired.

However, Dr Rogers argued that it did not properly address what he termed the “cumulative impact” of drilling multiple wells - as BPC has previously stated it plans to do - rather than just the initial Perseverance One well.

“As written, the EIA is a failure and does not meet the accepted intent of transparency and clear presentation of the cumulative

impacts,” he wrote in his analysis. “It can be summed up by one very consistent problem: In its 307 pages, it reads as an effort to throw up a distracting wall of information around the proposed project without performing any of its primary purposes, namely to disclose and mitigate risks of an offshore drilling project to the people of The Bahamas, weighing the overall impacts (including worst-case scenarios) against any societal benefits of the project, and presenting alternatives, so an informed decision can be made...

“In rough terms, it states: ‘We have a plan, it is very complicated but the risk is low and all laws will be followed’... In short, it’s a thick volume and contains complex and convoluted language, rather than clear, understandable language providing the context and understanding needed by government officials to approve the EIA and EMP.” However, Robertha Quant, BPC’s environmental scientist, previously told this newspaper that “five full-time ‘man years’ of work” - equating to more than 8,000 hours - went into producing the company’s latest EIA and EMP over the past two years.

Arguing that its environmental work has been available for public scrutiny since 2012, she added: “To our knowledge, there has never been a single comment or question to the company, challenge or inquiry, despite this availability to the public...

“The process was very stringent and very strict, consistent with the processes common all around the world for projects of this nature, and also consistent with new Bahamian legislation introduced in 2016, which is amongst the most modern anywhere in the world, and for which the government of the day received advice from various hydrocarbon and resources industry experts, experienced international consultants, and other Commonwealth countries.”

Describing the risk of an oil spill as “minimal”, a conclusion she said was “grounded in science and procedure”, Ms Quant said the EMP contained a “detailed oil emergency response plan” to deal with any pollution or spillage incidents.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 10, 2020, PAGE 7

Baha Mar returnees increasing to 1,800 FROM PAGE ONE

SEN KWASI THOMPSON

KEN HUTTON

Dorian tax breaks extension branded ‘good Xmas gift’ FROM PAGE ONE tax breaks would continue beyond year-end, had been preying on the minds of merchants and the general public, he added that their continuation would help to make the Bahamian private sector more price competitive with foreign rivals and encourage locals to stay shopping at home.

Ensuring more dollars are spent at home this Christmas is seen as vital to helping the post-COVID-19 recovery, and Mr La Roda said of Mr Thompson’s announcement: “All of that is great news. I think it’s going to have a major impact on both businesses and residents in Grand Bahama.

“The significance of extending these concessions as it relates to businesses, especially coming into the holiday season, is it really puts consumers in a position where it remains more attractive to shop at home.

That will allow those businesses to make profits and get into a better financial standing going forward.

“The fact they’ve extended it to the end of the fiscal year allows that to continue until the middle of 2021, and businesses will have more time to recover and get back on a firmer footing. That extra six months will be a big relief to businesses and consumers on Grand Bahama.”

Mr Thompson, in addressing the Senate yesterday, confirmed that the sale and importation of key household items such as appliances, furniture and furnishings would remain “tax free” - devoid of any VAT and import duty - which was a key demand of the Abaco Chamber of Commerce on that island.

Fuel sales will also remain tax free to aid persons still on generator power, while the discount on VAT levied on real estate transactions worth less than $500,000 will also be continued for another six months.

And, given shipping and logistics delays, Mr Thompson said the government will “honour” tax breaks on imported vehicles provided documentary evidence shows they are shipped by year-end 2020 and arrive in The Bahamas by end-April next year.

“To further assist persons and businesses who are still recovering, and are now grappling further with COVID-19, the government has agreed to extend a number of tax relief measures to June 2021,” Mr Thompson said of the two islands’ Special Economic Recovery Zones.

“Despite the fact that government revenues are down by as much as 50 percent, this administration is ensuring that we still do as much as possible to cushion the economic blow for communities experiencing hardship.

The reality of our fiscal situation means that we cannot do or have everything on our wish list. However, the government will continue to deliver tax relief in critical areas.”

He added that the continued tax relief “had to be weighed against the reality of a very challenged fiscal situation brought about by the current economic reality. Nonetheless, the government is demonstrating that it is fully committed to supporting the ongoing Hurricane Dorian recovery process that continues within the Economic Recovery Zone. The work is not over, and we plan on leaving no one behind”.

However, while the tax breaks on building materials and the VAT exemption on construction services were already scheduled to last until end-June 2021, Mr Thompson said not all requests could be granted.

“The relief provisions from business licence and

real property taxes, and from VAT and import taxes on consumables, clothing, equipment and other replacement items other than those referred to above, will be discontinued at December 31 as per the current order and the originally agreed schedule,” Mr Thompson said.

Ken Hutton, the Abaco Chamber of Commerce’s president, while praising the government for its actions and granting the extensions, gave a cooler reaction to the announcement by saying he wanted to see specific details in writing.

“I think it provides a certain level of certainty because one of the big issues we have is, because of the COVID-19 situation worldwide, a lot of factories and a lot of suppliers are unable to provide materials we need in a timely fashion,” he explained. “If you order a fridge today you’re not going to get it until March.

“It’s important to understand we were shut down for eight months due to COVID-19 or more. We’re not complaining. It’s a good start. We’re thankful the government continues to be open and responsive to our input. We all have the same goal, which is to get Abaco back up and running as quickly as possible so we can resume being a major contributor to the Treasury.”

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

that flights coming into The Bahamas have been steadily increasing since early December in anticipation of the major hotels such as Atlantis, which opens today, and Baha Mar, returning.

Mr Davis, meanwhile, added: “At this time for the opening next week, bookings are slow; certainly significantly off over prior years. That is understandable with the COVID surge in our key markets. However, we expected this, and we think we’re in a very good position to open safely for all of our guests, our associates and the community.

“We believe this is a ramping up into the first quarter of 2021, where we’re starting to see some increased demand as we start to go into 2021 and beyond. So it’s an important milestone to show and build the consumer confidence for 2021. So we believe very strongly that we’re going to be providing an exceptional experience for all of our guests.”

Amenities that will be available for guests on December 17 will be the Grand Hyatt’s multiple restaurants, golf and tennis facilities, and Baha Mar’s new miniature golf course.

The prime minister yesterday toured Baha Mar’s new $250m water park, where 85 percent of the value of contracts has been issued to Bahamian companies.

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis tours Baha Mar with Graeme Davis, president.

Photos: OPM Communications Unit

Some 350 to 400 Bahamians have been employed daily since construction resumed after COVID-19 lockdowns, and around 400 new jobs will be created when it opens in July 2021.

“We would love the local community come and join us as well, to come and stay with us,” Mr Davis added yesterday. “We were offering complimentary COVID testing upon arrival. So it’s a great way to create a staycation and come and stay at the property, take a rapid antigen test and, of course, being negative, you can

come and enjoy the facilities and have a great vacation.

“Our number one priority is the safety and security of our guests, our associates in the community. We want to ensure that we have the necessary COVID protocols in place to do that.

“We are testing every guest upon arrival with a rapid antigen test. We are testing all of our associates prior to arrival back to work, and also every week to ensure that we’re creating that safe environment. We have the necessary safety protocols in place in our

outlets. In our in all of our departments, proper sanitisation, physical distancing, mask wearing, washing hands,” he said.

“For instance, in restaurants, we have QR codes for menus. So you can order touch mostly. Our room keys have been switched over. We have these fantastic wristbands that we’ve used since 2019, where they can open the room and charge to the room through a wristband and attach those devices. So we’re creating a touchless experience as much as possible throughout the property.

“So we’re taking very seriously the safety and welfare of our guests, our associates in the community. We’re working closely with Doctors Hospital on the testing, and the reporting and working with the Ministry of Health as well.”

While Baha Mar plans to bring back 40 percent of its employees next week, the remaining 60 percent will remain on the government’s unemployment benefit scheme. Mr Davis said: “We are hopeful that the NIB and the Ministry of Finance will understand to treat our employees fairly.

“We appreciate what the Government of The Bahamas has done so far in supporting our associates, as have we with ex gratia payments, and we are hopeful that the Ministry of Finance along with NIB will make the necessary payments here as soon as possible.”

LEGAL NOTICE

Sparnweg Holdings Limited NOTICE is hereby given that in accordance with the provisions of Section 138 (8) of The International Business Companies Act, 2000, of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, the dissolution of Sparnweg Holdings Limited has been completed; a Certificate of Dissolution has been issued by the Registrar General and the Company has been struck from the Register of Companies on the 29th day of September, 2020. __________________________ Robbert Alexander Maas (Liquidator)

PAGE 8, Thursday, December 10, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

UK-EU to resume Brexit trade talks but say large gaps remain BRUSSELS Associated Press IN THE end, not even dinner of scallops and steamed turbot could bring the leaders of the European Union and Britain any closer together than months of talks by negotiators seeking to cobble together a trade deal in the wake of their Brexit divorce.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave the two sides four more days, until Sunday, to end four years of diplomatic heartburn and salvage the unlikeliest of trade deals after the UK voted to leave the EU in 2016. Otherwise, they face a tumultuous nodeal split at the end of the month, threatening hundreds of thousands of jobs and billions in losses.

Even after two lengthy phone calls and a threehour dinner in less than a week, there was still far too much which was unpalatable.

“We understand each other’s positions. They remain far apart,” von der Leyen said.

Johnson flew to Brussels in hopes of injecting

EUROPEAN Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, right, welcomes British Prime Minister Boris Johnson prior to a meeting at EU headquarters in Brussels yesterday. Leaders of Britain and the EU meet yesterday for a dinner that could pave the way to a post-Brexit trade deal, or tip the two sides toward a chaotic economic rupture at the end of the month.

Photo: Olivier Hoslet/AP new momentum into talks that are stuck on issues including fishing rights and competition rules.

But there was no breakthrough at the three-hour meeting, which Downing St described as “frank”.

Von der Leyen said it was “lively and interesting”.

But a whiff of progress anywhere? None.

Britain left the EU on Jan 31 but remains in its economic structures until

the end of the year. That means a serious economic rupture on Jan 1 that could be chaotic if there is no trade agreement.

The two leaders had hoped to inject political momentum into trade talks that have become hopelessly deadlocked on fishing and other key aspects of the future relationship. But Britain and the EU gave ominously opposing views of the main sticking points

— and each insisted the other must move to reach agreement.

Johnson told lawmakers in the House of Commons that the bloc’s demands that the UK continue to adhere to its standards or face retaliation were not “terms that any prime minister of this country should accept”.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed that the EU would not compromise on its core principles. Merkel told the German parliament that the bloc would “take a path without an … agreement if there are conditions from the British side that we can’t accept”.

The UK left the EU after 47 years of membership, but remains within the bloc’s tariff-free single market and customs union until the end of the year. Reaching a trade deal by then would ensure there are no tariffs or quotas on trade in goods on Jan 1, although there would still be new costs and red tape for businesses.

When Johnson was crossing over the English Channel to Brussels, down below the impact of Brexit was already visible with extra long tailbacks in France’s Calais where truckers were trying to meet the demands of UK companies which want to lay in extra stock ahead of potential disruption on Jan 1.

“For about the last three weeks we’ve seen an increase in the flow of traffic toward Great Britain due to stockpiling. The platforms, whether it’s the port and the (Euro)tunnel, don’t have capacity to absorb this increase in traffic,” said Sebastien Rivera, Secretary General of France’s National Federation of Road Transport.

“Right now, it takes (truckers) easily three or four more hours to cross the English Channel. So it is easily 240 or 300 euros of financial costs to the company, that’s for nothing more than the additional time it takes,” Rivera told the Associated Press.

Failure to secure a trade

deal would cause much greater disruption, bringing tariffs and other barriers that would hurt both sides, although most economists think the British economy would take a greater hit because the UK does almost half of its trade with the bloc.

Months of trade talks have failed to bridge the gaps on three issues — fishing rights, fair-competition rules and the governance of future disputes.

While both sides want a deal, they have fundamentally different views of what it entails. The EU fears Britain will slash social and environmental standards and pump state money into UK industries, becoming a low-regulation economic rival on the bloc’s doorstep — hence the demand for strict “level playing field” guarantees in exchange for access to its markets.

Merkel said “the integrity of the single market must be preserved.”

“We must have a level playing field not just for today, but we must have one for tomorrow or the day after, and to do this we must have agreements on how one can react if the other changes their legal situation,” Merkel said.

The UK government sees Brexit as about sovereignty and “taking back control” of the country’s laws, borders and waters. It claims the EU is trying to bind Britain to the bloc’s rules indefinitely.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 10, 2020, PAGE 9

US govt, states sue Facebook for ‘predatory’ conduct WASHINGTON Associated Press

THE US government and 48 states and districts sued Facebook yesterday, accusing it of abusing its market power in social networking to crush smaller competitors and seeking remedies that could include a forced spinoff of the social network’s Instagram and WhatsApp messaging services.

The landmark antitrust lawsuits, announced by the Federal Trade Commission and New York Attorney General Letitia James, mark the second major government offensive this year against seemingly untouchable tech behemoths. The Justice Department sued Google in October for abusing its dominance in online search and advertising — the government’s most significant attempt to buttress competition since its historic case against Microsoft two decades ago. Amazon and Apple

also have been under investigation in Congress and by federal authorities for alleged anticompetitive conduct.

James noted at a press conference that “it’s really critically important that we block this predatory acquisition of companies and that we restore confidence to the market.”

The FTC said Facebook has engaged in a “a systematic strategy” to eliminate its competition, including by purchasing smaller up-andcoming rivals like Instagram in 2012 and WhatsApp in 2014. James echoed that in her press conference, saying Facebook “used its monopoly power to crush smaller rivals and snuff out competition, all at the expense of everyday users”.

The FTC fined Facebook $5bn in 2019 for privacy violations and instituted new oversight and restrictions on its business. The fine was the largest the agency has ever levied on a tech

company, although it had no visible impact on Facebook’s business.

Facebook called the government actions “revisionist history” that punishes successful businesses and noted that the FTC cleared the Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions years ago. “The government now wants a do-over, sending a chilling warning to American business that no sale is ever final,” Facebook general counsel Jennifer Newstead said in a statement that echoed the company’s response to a recent congressional antitrust probe.

Facebook is the world’s biggest social network with 2.7 billion users and a company with a market value of nearly $800bn whose CEO Mark Zuckerberg is the world’s fifth-richest individual and the most public face of Big Tech swagger.

James alleged Facebook had a practice of opening its site to third-party app developers, then abruptly cutting

off developers that it saw as a threat. The lawsuit — which includes 46 states, Guam and the District of Columbia — accuses Facebook of anti-competitive conduct and using its market dominance to harvest consumer data and reap a fortune in advertising revenues.

North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, who was on the executive committee of attorneys general conducting the investigation, said the litigation has the potential to alter the communications landscape the way the breakup of AT&T’s local phone service monopoly in the early 1980s did.

“Our hope is to restructure the social networking marketplace in the United States, and right now there’s one player,” Stein told reporters. James said the coalition worked collaboratively with the FTC but noted the attorneys general conducted their investigation separately.

Antitrust expert Rebecca Allensworth, a law professor

at Vanderbilt University, said it is “hard to win any antitrust lawsuit and this one is not any different”. But as far as antitrust cases go, she added, the government has a strong one.

The Justice Department’s suit against Google, announced just two weeks before Election Day, brought accusations of political motivation from some quarters. It was filed by a cabinet agency headed by an attorney general seen as a close ally of President Donald Trump, who has often publicly criticised Google.

The FTC, by contrast, is an independent regulatory agency whose five commissioners currently include three Republicans and two Democrats.

President-elect Joe Biden has said the breakup of Big Tech giants should be seriously considered. He has singled out Facebook’s Zuckerberg for scorn, calling him “a real problem”.

Instagram and WhatsApp are among some 70 companies that Facebook has acquired over the past 15 years. But they are the ones most frequently held up by Facebook critics as properties that should be split off.

Facebook paid $1bn for Instagram, bolstering the social network’s business a month before its stock went public. At the time, the photo-sharing app had about 30 million users and wasn’t producing any revenue. A few years later, Facebook acquired WhatsApp, an encrypted messaging service, for $19bn.

Zuckerberg vowed both companies would be run independently, but over the years the services have become increasingly integrated. Users are now able to link accounts and share content across the platforms.

Instagram now has more than one billion users worldwide. Such integration could make it more difficult to break off the companies.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, KADANE JACQULINE FARRINGTON of Prince Charles Drive, Nassau, Bahamas, intend to change my name to KADANE JACQULINE CAMBRIDGE. 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, New Providence, Bahamas no later than Thirty (30) days after the date of the publication of this notice.

MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com

WEDNESDAY, 9 DECEMBER 2020

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX:

CLOSE

CHANGE

2088.97

-0.01

%CHANGE

YTD

YTD%

0.00 -142.63

-6.39

(242) 323-2330 (242) 323-2320

BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.05 33.05 2.00 1.79 2.39 6.00 6.75 4.40 8.59 4.50 6.16 12.77 3.64 6.50 10.88 8.44 16.99 4.25 9.26 15.21

52WK LOW 3.13 22.65 0.67 1.62 1.67 5.00 6.00 2.70 4.75 3.50 5.90 11.06 2.10 3.96 9.60 7.50 13.04 3.20 8.15 14.00

PREFERENCE SHARES 1.00

1.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1.00 10.00 1.00

1.00 10.00 0.90

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Benchmark Bahamas First Holdings Limited Bank of Bahamas Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Cable Bahamas Commonwealth Brewery Commonwealth Bank Colina Holdings CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Emera Incorporated Famguard RF Bank & Trust Limited Focol Finco J. S. Johnson

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

Bahamas First Holdings Preference Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A RF Bank & Trust Limited Class A Focol Class B

BFHP CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA FBBA FCLB

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00 100.00

115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 102.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

52WK HI 2.37 4.43 2.13 198.39 176.73 1.69 1.85 1.77 1.24 8.39 10.26 7.23 12.80 12.81 10.81 10.00 8.98 11.79

52WK LOW 2.11 3.30 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.65 1.79 1.75 1.05 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20

SECURITY RF Bank Note 22 (Series B) + Bahamas First Holdings Limited

SYMBOL FBB22 BFHB

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing)

MUTUAL FUNDS

MARKET TERMS

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

BAH29 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0307 BG0330 BG0407

LAST CLOSE 4.05 32.12 1.62 1.78 1.67 6.00 6.61 2.90 4.75 3.63 5.90 11.26 2.34 6.50 10.38 8.40 14.12 3.80 8.25 15.20

CLOSE 4.05 32.12 1.62 1.78 1.67 6.00 6.61 2.90 4.75 3.63 5.90 11.26 2.36 6.50 10.35 8.40 14.12 3.80 8.25 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 0.00 0.02 0.00 (0.03) 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00

1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00

LAST SALE 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00

107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

VOLUME 50

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

45

VOLUME

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

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00

NAV 2.37 4.43 2.13 198.36 173.98 1.69 1.79 1.77 1.05 8.39 9.88 7.23 12.33 12.80 10.20 N/A 9.28 11.86

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

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

P/E 16.9 34.5 N/M N/M N/M N/M 17.9 -6.6 33.9 19.7 13.1 15.6 23.1 13.9 16.0 11.5 17.3 18.7 8.8 24.1

YIELD 4.20% 3.92% 1.23% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 3.93% 0.00% 0.00% 3.31% 3.73% 6.39% 18.39% 0.92% 3.17% 2.86% 3.82% 3.16% 2.42% 4.01%

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

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

INTEREST Prime + 1.75% 6.25%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2022 30-Sep-2025

6.95% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.50% 6.25% 4.25%

20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2022

YTD% 12 MTH% 3.76% 4.43% 1.54% 2.56% 2.12% 2.59% 1.65% 2.39% 4.34% 9.82% 1.65% 1.95% -3.06% -2.22% 0.80% 1.17% -12.30% -11.81% 0.64% 0.98% 1.19% -3.63% 4.20% 5.04% 2.63% 7.68% 3.68% 3.93% -4.89% -4.62% N/A N/A -0.50% 3.70% -3.80% 4.10%

NAV Date 31-Oct-2020 31-Oct-2020 30-Oct-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 31-Oct-2020 31-Oct-2020 31-Oct-2020 31-Oct-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020 30-Sep-2020

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price

52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks

Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity

52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks

Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity

Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume

Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price

Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume

Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week

Change - Change in closing price from day to day

EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths

Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today

NAV - Net Asset Value

DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months

N/M - Not Meaningful

P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | CAROLISLE 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225 | BENCHMARK 242-326-7333

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 10, 2020, PAGE 11

WEAKNESS IN TECH COMPANIES LEADS STOCKS LOWER ON WALL STREET Associated Press

US stock indexes pulled back from their recent record highs yesterday, as virus cases surge and coronavirus vaccines move closer to distribution.

The S&P 500 index fell 0.8%, as losses in technology companies outweighed gains in industrial, energy and materials stocks. The benchmark index is still up 1.4% for the month after climbing to record highs four times in the past two weeks.

Markets have been mostly pushing higher in recent weeks on hopes that one or more coronvairus

vaccines will begin to be distributed in coming weeks and begin to ease the economy out of the pandemic’s grip.

A vaccine from Pfizer and German partner BioNTech, which is already in use in the UK, is on track for a positive review and potential approval in the US within the next week. The Food and Drug Administration will also consider a vaccine developed by Moderna later this month.

But there could be more economic damage in store over the next few months and investors are still closely watching Washington for any developments on another shot of stimulus

for people, businesses and state governments. Congress is still divided over the size and scope of any new package and the Trump administration has added to the potential plans with a new $916bn proposal.

“You haven’t seen a deal out of Congress, so to the extent that markets have been rallying on another round of hope about stimulus, not getting that lets a little bit of air out of the market,” said Willie Delwiche, investment strategist at Baird.

The S&P 500 dropped 29.43 points to 3,672.82.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 105.07 points, or 0.4%, to 30,068.81. The

tech-heavy Nasdaq composite fell 243.82 points, or 1.9%, to 12,338.95.

The Russell 200 index of small company stocks gave up 15.63 points, or 0.8%, to 1,902.15. Small company stocks have been outgaining the broader market this month and the Russell 2000 is holding onto a 4.5% gain.

Technology stocks fell and dragged much of the market with them. Health care and communications stocks also slipped. Microsoft shed 1.9% while Pfizer Inc fell 1.7%.

About 56% of the companies in the S&P 500 fell, led

by Qorvo, which declined 5.6%.

Treasury yields gained

ground in a sign of optimism for the the economy.

The yield on the ten-year Treasury rose to 0.94% from 0.90% late Tuesday.

Investors still have an appetite for IPO’s as meal delivery service DoorDash soared 85.8% in its market debut. The company has been one of the beneficiaries of the stay-at-home economy as more people shop and order food from their homes.

The market has generally been making gains as investors weigh the continued economic damage being inflicted by the virus against anticipation for a return to normalcy as vaccines start to move closer to approval

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-Day Forecast

TODAY

ORLANDO

High: 70° F/21° C Low: 47° F/8° C

TAMPA

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

MONDAY

Nice with clouds and sun

Partly cloudy

Periods of clouds and sunshine

Mostly sunny and nice

Sunny and nice

Partly sunny with a shower in spots

High: 73°

Low: 66°

High: 77° Low: 69°

High: 79° Low: 69°

High: 80° Low: 69°

High: 81° Low: 66°

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

74° F

64° F

75°-67° F

82°-71° F

88°-74° F

89°-66° F

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: 73° F/23° C Low: 63° F/17° C

6-12 knots

S

WEST PALM BEACH High: 71° F/22° C Low: 57° F/14° C

4-8 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE E

W

FREEPORT

High: 71° F/22° C Low: 60° F/16° C

N

S

E

W

High: 71° F/22° C Low: 63° F/17° C

MIAMI

High: 71° F/22° C Low: 59° F/15° C

4-8 knots

Statistics are for Nassau through 1 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 70° F/21° C Low .................................................... 66° F/19° C Normal high ....................................... 79° F/26° C Normal low ........................................ 68° F/20° C Last year’s high ................................. 83° F/28° C Last year’s low ................................... 68° F/20° C Precipitation As of 1 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.00” Year to date ............................................... 67.20” Normal year to date ................................... 38.91”

ELEUTHERA

NASSAU

High: 73° F/23° C Low: 66° F/19° C

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2020

High: 75° F/24° C Low: 66° F/19° C

N

KEY WEST

High: 69° F/21° C Low: 64° F/18° C

High: 76° F/24° C Low: 68° F/20° C

N

S

E

W

6-12 knots

S

6-12 knots Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

High

Ht.(ft.)

Low

Ht.(ft.)

Today

3:25 a.m.

3:41 p.m.

2.9 2.6

9:45 a.m. 0.1 10:00 p.m. -0.4

Friday

4:23 a.m.

4:39 p.m.

3.1 2.7

10:47 a.m. -0.1 10:53 p.m. -0.6

Saturday

5:19 a.m.

5:36 p.m.

3.3 2.7

11:46 a.m. -0.3 11:46 p.m. -0.8

Sunday

6:12 a.m.

6:30 p.m.

3.5 2.7

12:41 p.m. -0.5 ---------

Monday

7:04 a.m.

7:23 p.m.

3.6 2.6

12:38 a.m. -0.9 1:34 p.m. -0.6

Tuesday

7:55 a.m.

8:16 p.m.

3.5 2.6

1:30 a.m. -0.9 2:26 p.m. -0.6

Wednesday 8:46 a.m.

9:08 p.m.

3.5 2.5

2:21 a.m. -0.8 3:17 p.m. -0.5

sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset

6:44 a.m.

5:21 p.m.

Moonrise Moonset

2:13 a.m.

2:20 p.m.

New

First

Full

Last

Dec. 14

Dec. 21

Dec. 29

Jan. 6

ANDROS

High: 77° F/25° C Low: 69° F/21° C

High: 77° F/25° C Low: 72° F/22° C

N

High: 74° F/23° C Low: 66° F/19° C

E

W S

LONG ISLAND High: 77° F/25° C Low: 70° F/21° C

6-12 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 78° F/26° C Low: 71° F/22° C

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS

are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

RAGGED ISLAND High: 77° F/25° C Low: 71° F/22° C

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 70° F/21° C

GREAT INAGUA High: 80° F/27° C Low: 72° F/22° C

N

N E

W

E

W

H

tiDes For nassau

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

tracking map H

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

CAT ISLAND

E

W

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

uV inDex toDay

TONIGHT

High: 72° F/22° C Low: 54° F/12° C

and wider distribution. The recent surge in coronavirus cases and tighter restrictions on businesses over the last few weeks has again raised the importance of a vaccine for beaten down businesses.

European markets ended mixed. France’s CAC 40 was down 0.3%, Germany’s DAX rose 0.5% and the FTSE 100 in London rose 0.1%. Asian markets mostly rose.

S

S

8-16 knots

7-14 knots

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

Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday:

WINDS N at 4-8 Knots E at 6-12 Knots NE at 6-12 Knots ENE at 7-14 Knots N at 6-12 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NE at 7-14 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NNE at 6-12 Knots ENE at 7-14 Knots N at 4-8 Knots E at 6-12 Knots NE at 6-12 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NE at 7-14 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NNE at 7-14 Knots E at 8-16 Knots NNE at 7-14 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NNE at 4-8 Knots ENE at 6-12 Knots NE at 8-16 Knots E at 8-16 Knots NE at 6-12 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots

WAVES 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 3-5 Feet 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 3-5 Feet 1-2 Feet 3-5 Feet 3-6 Feet 4-8 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 2-4 Feet

VISIBILITY 5 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 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 78° F 78° F 74° F 72° F 79° F 78° F 81° F 81° F 78° F 78° F 75° F 75° F 77° F 78° F 82° F 82° F 81° F 81° F 81° F 81° F 79° F 78° F 80° F 80° F 79° F 78° F