Baha Mar in $200m contractor bonanza Baha Mar has pledged to award all contracts for the $200 million first phase construction of its $2.6 billion Cable Beach redevelopment to Bahamian contractors, providing more than 250 jobs during the first 12 months of work, with some 3,300 locals set to gain work over the three-and-a-half year building phase.

Robert Sands, Baha Mar's senior vice-president for governmental and external affairs, said the developer hoped to begin construction work once it and its equity partner, China State Construction, received all the relevant approvals from the Bahamian and Chinese governments.

Unwilling to put a timeframe on those approvals, following last night's announcement that Baha Mar had concluded a $2.5 billion loan agreement with the China Export-Import Bank - Tribune Business having predicted that they would sign "within the week" - Mr Sands said the developer hoped to meet with the Ingraham administration "as soon as possible".

"The significant part about that first phase construction is that it's in excess of $200 million, and we have committed to awarding all those contracts to Bahamian contractors," Mr Sands told Tribune Business, adding that Baha Mar wanted to go out to tender on bids/start construction as soon as the Bahamian government's approvals were obtained.

First phase construction involves the re-routing of West Bay Street around Baha Mar's 1,000-acre resort campus, away from its present position through the heart of the development site.

That move will also involve the demolition of the existing bank and government office buildings on West Bay Street, requiring the construction of new, relocated properties for Fidelity Bank (Bahamas); Commonwealth Bank; Scotiabank (Bahamas); the Straw Market; police/fire station and Cecil-Wallace Whitfield building in a new Commercial Village.

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