PM wants port projects fast-tracked amid development push

Prime Minister Mia Mottley has urged the Bridgetown Port Inc. to fast-track key expansion projects, warning that delays to critical cruise and security infrastructure are no longer acceptable as Barbados strengthens its position as a leading Caribbean cruise hub.

The projects include a new cruise pier, a central container examination facility and a waterfront hotel project tied to a proposed Caribbean cricket legends franchise.

At the official commissioning of the port’s new Berth 6, Mottley said Barbados could no longer afford delays in expanding its cruise infrastructure, despite ongoing legal matters surrounding the project.

“I have met earlier this year with the chairman, the management, and the minister to ensure that the work which is necessary to build out a cruise pier as a finger pier be given immediate priority,” she said, adding that while “some litigation measures” still had to be addressed, “this country can no longer put its cruise development on pause”.

“I do not accept that these matters can continue to be put on a slow development trajectory when the country is clearly continuing to exhibit itself as one of the most important cruise ports in the Americas,” the prime minister added.

The proposed cruise pier and aggregate facility would both create important revenue streams for the port through head taxes and other income generation opportunities, Mottley said. But she stressed that the planned central container examination facility was equally critical for national security.

“This government has spared no money in investing in scanners and scanning capacity in the Bridgetown port and will continue to do so,” she said. “The ability to move with haste to the container examination facility is a critical aspect of government continuing to enhance our security in this port.”

She revealed that the Ministry of Finance had approved a $70m loan for the Bridgetown Port and expressed hope that financing arrangements would now move quickly to allow the projects to proceed.

Mottley also praised the board and management of the port for pursuing what she described as cost-efficient development plans.

“This is the kind of cost efficiency that I expect will continue as part of the behaviour of the Bridgetown port,” she said.

The prime minister also outlined ambitious plans for a waterfront hotel development near Kensington Oval, which she suggested could become the foundation of a wider Caribbean cricket legends tourism brand.

She noted that government procurement facilities and other state operations currently occupy lands on the waterfront, but said discussions were advanced on relocating those services to make way for redevelopment.

“We have spoken extensively about the possibility of hotel development on the water’s edge,” she said, comparing the vision to waterfront properties in St Lucia and Europe.

Calling Kensington Oval “the third most iconic cricket ground in the world”, Mottley said the surrounding lands presented “a unique opportunity for the beginnings of a magnificent project, not just for Barbados, but for this entire region”.

The proposed concept, she explained, would centre around a “Legends of the Caribbean” brand, with hotels across the region celebrating the legacy of former West Indies cricketers.

“I have no doubt that the former West Indies cricketers who brought so much glory to us and who earned so little during their dominance would be happy for the opportunity to know that their image and their excellence can finally be rewarded,” she said.

The proposed Legends Hotel, she added, would occupy “an iconic position next to Kensington Oval”.

(SB)

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المصدر: Barbados Today