The government and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) yesterday broke ground on what is expected to be a more than $200 million transformation of Ocean Cay, just off Bimini, into a cruise port, boutique hotel, marine park and Bahamian cultural and entertainment hub.
"What they have agreed to do, no cruise line, no matter how much it is connected to our country, has ever agreed to do," said Prime Minister Perry Christie at the groundbreaking ceremony on the island, which was the central site for aragonite extraction and was notoriously used for illegal dumping.
"We are establishing an innovation that we hope not to depart from and that will direct and govern all decisions that governments of The Bahamas [make] as to how to maximize the return on cruise ship investments in our country."
Under the heads of agreement, MSC has committed to construct a 20-room hotel, Bahamian shopping village, theater, restaurants, sporting and entertainment centers, a spa, 10-15 slip mega yacht marina with future plans to expand it to a 45-slip marina, a heliport, straw market and marine reserve.
The company is also expected to construct facilities for a police station, customs and immigration terminals and ferry passage for law enforcement authorities, according to Christie.
Additionally, the prime minister said MSC has made a significant commitment to Bahamian entrepreneurial development through offering financing of construction and equipment with respect to the planned retail shops, restaurants, entertainment, attractions and water sports - "to be operated by Bahamians".
Christie added, "To all Bahamians, wherever you may be in The Bahamas, the government through the wonderful, constructive collaboration of the Aponte family (owner of MSC) has been able to secure for Bahamians, not just the opportunity to own and operate, but the opportunity to have it financed.
"God has smiled on the people of Bimini."
The developer projects that 100 Bahamian seafarers will be hired on board MSC's cruise ships this month.
A further 300 jobs at minimum are expected to be filled for the operational needs of Ocean Cay.
Over the next 18 to 24 months, 1,000 construction jobs will be made available to Bahamians, officials claimed.
Pierfrancesco Vago, MSC executive chairman, said when completed Ocean Cay will be a "flourishing environment, pristine marine reserve populated by thousands of indigenous trees and plants and flowers. These waters will once again host local coral and fish species".
He said with an envisioned 11,400 feet of beaches, Ocean Cay will be returned to "paradise"; ready to welcome thousands of visitors on a daily basis.
"Our partnership will turn this industrial wasteland into a thriving environment for man and natural life," he said. "I think that is worth celebrating together."
Vago added, "As a result of the $200 million investment that we [will] make, we will engage more than 1,000 locals Mr. Prime Minister to work on the massive development of Sandy Cay to go through as we transform it to Ocean Cay. This will result in benefits and of course substantial economic benefit for the region.
"Once the work is finalized, we will employ over 120 locals...to run the operations.
"They will be based here on the island."
With 20 Bahamians already working on MSC cruise ships, Vago said MSC expects an additional 240 Bahamians to be trained to work on its cruise ships this year.
He said the development will take "passion, vision and guts to build a real paradise", which he foreshadowed will put The Bahamas "right in the front of the whole world".
According to the prime minister, MSC also intends to establish a seafarers technical school on Grand Bahama to train future employees and envisions partnering with the University of The Bahamas.

Marine reserve
To the issue of aragonite production, Christie said, "This was an area where for years and years, decades, where industrial activity took place here.
"Bahamians were living here and producing here, exporting sand and aragonite.
"We have had a lot of public commentary on the natural resource of our country called aragonite."
The prime minister said the government has completed a series of consultations to enable it to put in place a new regime to regulate and govern the export of aragonite and announced that Ocean Cay will be a marine protected area.
He spoke to the level of degradation that existed before MSC came to the island and began to "revert it back to what it will eventually become".
At yesterday's ceremony, Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe said it took true vision to look at what was considered waste and dust, and see paradise.
Pointing to the prime minister's vision, Wilchcombe said no island has been left behind in the overall master plan to advance and develop the country and its people.
"Bahamians will not be watching from the outside but sitting at the table as the country propels into new growth."
When developed and completed, Ocean Cay is projected to attract 369,000 passengers annually, according to Christie, who said the project bodes well for Bahamians and the nation.

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