Two cabinet ministers revealed Tuesday that Lucayan Renewal Holdings has received in excess of 10 letters of interest from various parties bargaining to purchase the Grand Lucayan Resort on Grand Bahama.
Peter Turnquest, Deputy Prime Minister and Member of Parliament for East Grand Bahama and Kwasi Thompson, State Minister for Grand Bahama, confirmed to media outside of Cabinet office on Tuesday that the overhaul and sale of the Grand Lucayan resort is gaining steam.
Both men confirmed that Lucayan renewal holdings – the company responsible for the purchase and sale of the resort – has received in excess 10 letters of interest to date.
“The board is currently in the process of reviewing offers and letters of interest that have been submitted. There have been in excess of 10 letters received,” Thompson said.
In the coming weeks, the company’s board of directors are expected to offer their recommendations to the government as to who should be selected as the property’s new owner, he affirmed.
“We also expect that the board will come back to us with a plan for renovations. The board is working and they are on the ground getting stuff done so we are looking forward to getting their recommendations,” he shared.
“We are focused on ensuring that we, as quickly as possible, sell to a qualified capable buyer. But in the meantime, we know that there are a number of items that need to be renovated so we will look at the board’s recommendations and then the government will make a determination on how it happens.”
Thompson also affirmed that the company is currently in the process of reviewing the Voluntary Separation Packages (VSEPS) being offered to employees.
“The board has taken control of the resort and they are now in the process of speaking with the unions and are now in the process of looking at the voluntary separation packages provided by the union,” he said.
Turnquest confirmed that the monies needed for the separation packages will not affect the government’s budget for the year ahead.
As for the monies that the government spent on the purchase of the resort, Turnquest said government remains confident that the company’s board of directors will earn its return on investment.
“We are confident that the board of Lucayan Renewal Holdings will do the best job possible to mitigate and minimize any subvention being required from government,” he said.
“Under the prior ownership government was subventing somewhere around half a million dollars. We would certainly like to keep it around there but again circumstances will dictate what happens.”
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