Prime Minister, the Hon. Philip Davis and other government officials traveled to Grand Bahama on Tuesday where a signing ceremony for the acquisition of the Grand Bahama Power Company (GBPC) was held.
During his remarks on the landmark deal the Prime Minister addressed the fate of the GBPC employees. He said, “the acquisition also protects the employment and benefits of all existing employees of Grand Bahama Power Company. The Bahamian management team will remain in place.”
The deal will align Grand Bahama with the national energy framework that will ensure that Grand Bahama residents are no longer subject to a separate system. It is projected that GBPC customers will save about 37% on their monthly bills. Mr. Davis said, “the government of The Bahamas, through a special purpose vehicle called the Grand Bahama Electricity Company, is acquiring all of the outstanding shares of Grand Bahama Power Company. The transaction is funding by a loan from Standard Chartered and Scotiabank. Grand Bahama Power Company will adopt the BPL tariff schedule for services provided to customers in Grand Bahama. And you would have heard that that adoption could result in savings of an average of 37%.”
Minister of Energy and Transport, the Hon. Jobeth Coleby-Davis said the acquisition is about more than just lower power bills. She said, “today’s announcement is historic and more importantly, it is a step in the right direction for Grand Bahama’s over 17,000 households and over 1,500 small and medium sized businesses.”
Also on hand at the signing ceremony was Minister for Grand Bahama, the Hon. Ginger Moxey who said the deal was a victory for Grand Bahama. “This Davis administration has heard the cries and meaningful change is here to address this vexing legacy issue, she said
The Grand Bahama Power Company was represented by Emera Executive Vice President and Board Chair of Emera Caribbean, Karen Hunt and GBPC Chief Operations Officer, Nikita Mullings.
Hunt said, “this transition of ownership from Emera to the government provides a historic opportunity for Grand Bahama Power and the island of Grand Bahama to play a pivotal role in the nation’s energy future under The Bahamas’ comprehensive and progressive national energy policy.”
For her part Mullings said, “we remain committed to ensuring and strengthening alignment with the national energy policy.”
The Prime Minister thanked Emera for bearing the burden that the government should have.
