Michael Scott no longer ‘involved’ in Grand Lucayan sale negotiations

Chairman of Lucayan Renewal Holdings Michael Scott yesterday said he is no longer involved in the negotiations surrounding the sale of the Grand Lucayan resort.

Scott, who was the lead negotiator in the sale of the hotel to Royal Caribbean International (RCI) and ITM Group, and who is also the chairman of the Hotel Corporation of The Bahamas, revealed to Guardian Business in a brief interview that he does not know the status of the sale.

Scott’s revelation casts doubt on the progress of the sale and exactly who is leading negotiations on the long-delayed transaction.

It also leaves opaque the certainty that the resort remains on target to welcome guests for its previously announced February 1 reopening date.

When contacted by Guardian Business yesterday for confirmation on whether the resort’s opening was still on target, Scott said, “I’m not sure, I haven’t been involved with that for a while.”

Minister of State for Finance Kwasi Thompson, who remains focused on major developments in Grand Bahama, and Minister of Tourism Dionisio D’Aguilar did not respond to Guardian Business’ inquiries about the sale and the resort’s reopening inquiries when contacted yesterday.

The government originally pegged early 2021 for the redevelopment of the Grand Lucayan by RCI and ITM, which signed a heads of agreement with the government last March for the sale of the property and the development of a cruise port.

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed the finalization of that sale.

While Scott’s detachment from the sale process is new, it follows the grumblings he previously expressed about the benefit of the deal to the country.

Last month, Scott described the pending sale as a “bad deal” for the Bahamian people, which D’Aguilar refuted, saying he was encouraged that RCI and ITM Group are still interested in moving forward with the deal.

In a controversial move, the government purchased the Grand Lucayan for $65 million from Cheung Kong Property Holdings Limited – the real estate arm of CK Hutchison Holdings – in August 2018.

D’Aguilar has said that on the government’s side, “things are ready to go” and regardless of when the development is complete, The Bahamas will benefit greatly.

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source https://thenassauguardian.com/michael-scott-no-longer-involved-in-grand-lucayan-sale-negotiations/