As a young boy I always envisioned myself disappearing to some far-off corner of the world to explore and live an exciting life. I would daydream about possible careers, trying to find a way in which I could combine travel and new experiences with an enjoyable occupation.

I coasted through education, keeping my options as open as possible, never really able to picture where my life was headed. I was eventually coerced into making some sort of a decision as I crept closer to further education. I had a curiosity about animals, a love of the ocean, and a passion for the environment, which compelled me in the direction of zoology – with a hope of heading abroad in the future to study or research.

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This is an excerpt from The Independent as it appeared on August 8, 2013. For updates or to read the current version of this post in its entirety, please click here.

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The Bahamas International Securities Exchange (BISX) announced today that Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) Limited has successfully completed the listing process for their Series E Redeemable 6% Fixed Rate Notes due 2018 (the “Notes”) which are now listed on the Exchange under the symbol FBB18. The Notes have been added to the roster of securities listed on the Exchange and will trade through the BISX Automated Trading System (BATS).

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HG Christie Ltd (HGC), the oldest full-service real estate brokerage in the Bahamas, lists historical private island opportunity Bird Cay located at the south end of the popular Berry Island chain in a new Marine Reserve similar to the Land and Sea Park at Exuma Cays. Bird Cay is a 250-acre tropical island located 30 minutes from Nassau, protected on all sides by neighboring islands.

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TXO (LON:TXO) says The Grand Bahama Group, in which it is invested, has named Michael Baker-Harber as chairman, effective August 1.

The 67-year-old is an expert in international shipping and specialises in commercial litigation, it said.

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This is an excerpt from Proactive Investors Australia as it appeared on August 7, 2013. For updates or to read the current version of this post in its entirety, please click here.

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The Bahamian construction industry is showing signs of growth as it battles to recover from the recent worldwide economic downturn, according to project manager at Carib Construction Alvin Lewis.

Lewis, who has over 25 years experience in the sector, says his company is seeing a slight improvement in business and thinks this growth will continue.

“The construction business has been in a recession like everything else,” he said.

“It is starting to rebound now though. We are seeing a better year than the previous one.”

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Great Exuma is looking to expand its tourism offering, as existing resorts report an uptick in visitors.
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StockMarketWire.com – Bahamas Petroleum Co posts operating losses of $3.01m for the six months to the end of June – down from $3.1m last time.

The company said that it had a clear mandate from the government of The Bahamas to proceed with exploration drilling with an obligation to start an exploration well by April 2015.

And it said that any referendum process on future oil development has been deferred until after the exploration drilling phase and commercial reserves established.

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NEW YORK, Aug. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Morgans Hotel Group Co. (NASDAQ: MHGC) today reported financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2013.

Highlights

• Adjusted EBITDA was $12.6 million in the second quarter of 2013, a $6.2 million, or 98.0% increase over the same period in 2012, due primarily to an increase in EBITDA at Hudson.
• Operating margins at the Company’s Owned Hotels and leased food and beverage operations increased approximately 600 basis points during the second quarter of 2013 as compared to the same period in 2012.
• Revenue per available room (“RevPAR”) for System-Wide Comparable Hotels increased by 10.6% in constant dollars, or 9.9% in actual dollars, during the second quarter of 2013 from the comparable period in 2012, driven primarily by an increase in occupancy of 9.7%.
• RevPAR at Hudson, the Company’s non-comparable hotel located in New York City, increased by 30.2%, driven by a 25.8% increase in occupancy during the second quarter of 2013 as compared to the same period in 2012.  Hudson’s strong operating performance was also positively impacted by its new restaurant, Hudson Common, which opened in February 2013.
• In July 2013, the Company entered into a hotel management agreement for an approximately 211-room Delano-branded condo-hotel to be located in Cartagena, Colombia.  Upon completion and opening of the hotel, the Company will operate the hotel pursuant to a 20-year management agreement, with one 10-year extension option.  The hotel is scheduled to open in 2016.

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LONDON, August 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Industry-leading and award-winning provider of turnkey sports betting solutions, SBTech penetrates the US market thanks to an exclusive deal with Genting Alderney, a subsidiary company of Genting International, that will see them provide the Genting group with a complete turnkey sports betting solution for its new project, Bimini SuperFast Ferry . The first stage of this multi stages project will see SBTech providing a complete betting facility to the Bimini SuperFast Ferry, a 32,000 ton cruise ship that will sail between Miami and Resorts World Bimini in the Bahamas. The twice daily cruise is capable of accommodating 6,000 daily passengers and features restaurants, bars, the largest party deck in Florida and a sportsbook provided by SBTech.

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One of the most popular regulatory stories was Bahamas Petroleum (LON:BPC), which said that the political uncertainty over exploration around the sunshine islands is dissipating.

In its results statement for the six months to June 30, the AIM listed group said it now has a “clear mandate” to proceed with exploration of its licences with an obligation to drill its first well by April 2015. A second will commence by April 2017.

This follows a decision by the government to defer a referendum on future oil development until after the exploration phase is completed and only once commercial reserves have been established.

This is an excerpt from Proactive Investors as it appeared on August 6, 2013. For updates or to read the current version of this post in its entirety, please click here.

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