‘Buccament Project will be built, people will be paid’

“The project will be built! You will be paid!”

These were the emphatic words of Paudie O’Halloran, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the St Lucia-based International Construction & Engineering (ICE) group, as he tried fervently to convince a gathering of local suppliers that Harlequin Hotel and Resort, through his company, will pay them the millions owed for services they rendered to the stalled project.{{more}}

At a meeting on Monday that was ironically held in one of the Buccament Bay Beach Resort bungalows, 12 of what is now believed to be 80 or so suppliers, who are owed almost $6 million, met with O’Halloran for about two hours, during which time he passionately outlined the developers’ offer to them.

O’Halloran told the suppliers that Harlequin was determined to see the project completed, and the recent sacking of former contractors, Ridgeview Construction, will not weaken this resolve.

He said that the developers were prepared to pay the suppliers in four installments, as of September of this year.

According to O’Halloran, money isn’t the problem, but the installments will give the developers the time needed to properly audit the accounts of all the creditors of the project.

He also sought to assure the businessmen that they all have a future in the project, which is set to resume in earnest in January next year.

However, talk about the future of the project wasn’t on the mind of the businessmen, who said that they have been put in a tight hole because of the delay in the payments. They all, some more vocally than others, indicated that they would only know if they could trust the word of Harlequin and the ICE group when they start receiving the money that they are owed.

Generally, the majority of the meeting saw the local businessmen standing quietly, with blank expressions, as O’Halloran spoke, except for a short period of time when one businessman voiced his frustration about the delay, and his misgivings about the trustworthiness of O’Halloran’s word.

That businessman, who is owed about $250,000, also asked about interest payment on the debt, seeing that some of the suppliers are paying their banks’ interests using overdraft facilities, while they wait on their money.

A heated exchange ensued and the businessman in question was asked to leave the meeting.

Following the meeting, to which SEARCHLIGHT was invited by the

ICE group to witness the “agreement” that was to be struck, another businessman said that the views expressed by the businessman who left the meeting are held by all the suppliers, but they were taking it easy so that they could receive their money as quickly as

possible.

“Some of the guys in a real tough spot. We don’t want to stir anything. We just want to get our money,” the businessman told SEARCHLIGHT.

O’Halloran continually tried to paint a picture to the suppliers that the decision by Harlequin to pay the local suppliers what they were owed by the former contractors, Ridgeview Construction, was done because Harlequin wanted to “ensure the survival of the local enterprises.”

SEARCHLIGHT, however, understands that part of the agreement between Ridgeview Construction and Harlequin, which saw Ridgeview’s services being terminated, was that Harlequin will pay the local suppliers what is owed to them by Ridgeview and that both parties (Ridgeview & Harlequin) will go their separate ways and not take any legal action against each other.

At press time, letters were to be issued to each creditor, outlining the agreement struck last Monday.

On the back page of our August 15 issue, SEARCHLIGHT reported that the local suppliers were contemplating taking legal action against the developers of the US $200 million project over the money that they are owed.

They had in fact already drafted a strongly worded letter but held back until the meeting.

Following the firing of Ridgeview Construction firm from the project, no one was sure what was to become of the project or how they were going to be paid. This is until they heard of the agreement between Harlequin and Ridgeview Construction, which made the former responsible for paying the debts.

They are now hoping that in two weeks’ time, September 1 to be exact, they will start to see light at the end of the tunnel.