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ECFH Closing Price as at December 5, 2019: $4.50

Market News

December 6, 2019

Sagicor sale a done deal

Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited’s (SFCL) acquisition by Canada’s Alignvest Acquisition II Corporation (AQY) is now a done deal, and the new entity, Sagicor Financial Company Ltd (Sagicor), says it has US$440 million in cash to spend.

However, Barbadians and others who opted to hold onto their Sagicor shares instead of receiving cash will have to open brokerage accounts in Canada if they want to trade their stock on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

That is because Sagicor’s stock will no longer be trading on stock exchanges in Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago and London as it is delisting from those markets.

Yesterday Sagicor and AQY jointly announced the closing of their US$536 million “business combination transaction”, which they said involved “the transfer of all issued and outstanding shares of SFCL to AQY in exchange for shareholders of SFCL receiving cash or shares of AQY”.

Officials said Sagicor “will retain overUS$440 million of net cash and will be exceptionally well capitalised”. The company “expects to utilise the cash for growth and for capital optimisation purposes”. (SC/PR)

Article published December 6, 2019 on nationnews.com

Guyana to earn billions from oil

GEORGETOWN, Guyana – London-based global information provider, IHS Markit Ltd, says Guyana’s consistent exploration success will be a plus even in a challenging oil price environment.

An article on the company’s website said more discoveries outside of the Stabroek block were essential for the country, proving that its potential stretched way beyond one field.

“The Guyana basin is successfully positioning itself as one of the most exciting emerging, deep-water exploration basins around the world,” IHS Markit stated.

Since 2015, ExxonMobil and its partners have made 14 discoveries, totalling more than six billion recoverable barrels of oil equivalent. The Liza field, the first discovered by ExxonMobil, is expected to start producing by year-end.

More recent discoveries include those by Tullow Oil and its partners in the Orinduik block. According to IHS Markit, these are expected to have a significant impact on the lives of Guyanese.

Minister of Natural Resources, the Raphael Trotman shared similar sentiments during a recent local radio interview.

Quoting an RYSTAD Energy report, the minister said Guyana’s projection was exceptional.

“RYSTAD Energy has updated its projections of Guyana’s earnings of $120 billion … $120 billion, that’s the Guyana government take, and by Guyana government, the people of Guyana,” Trotman noted.

His comment was in response to a question about the Guyana/ExxonMobil deal and how much the country stood to benefit.

“The maximum is 70 and the minimum is 45 and Guyana finds itself taking in 59 per cent ” the minister further explained.

Quoting RYSTAD again, he explained that even at a lower oil price, the country would still benefit.

“At a low price of oil, GY$10 000per barrel, Guyana will still earn approximately US$51 billion,” Trotman said.

However, IHS Markit predicts that the total capital investments for the development of the fields in the two blocks will be close to US$63 billion over the life of the field.

The majority of this investment, the company said, is directed towards the Liza field, followed by Turbot, Ranger and Pluma.

Additionally, all fields expected to be developed and brought online within the Stabroek and the Orinduik blocks have showcased a positive internal rate of return, from 10 per cent to 52 per cent with the Liza field leading. (CMC)

Article published December 5, 2019 on nationnews.com

Dominica: Election Violence – Cruise Cancellation, Travel Warnings

ROSEAU, Dominica (CMC) – Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit says several cruise ships have stopped coming to Dominica and blamed pre-election violence by supporters of the main Opposition United Workers Party (UWP) for the situation.

And the Governments of Canada and the US have issued Dominica travel advisories in response to civil unrest in Dominica ahead of Friday’s general election.

Two persons were shot and injured by the police Thursday morning in the village of Salisbury during attempts to quell demonstrations by some of the residents.

“All cruise ship calls to Dominica have been cancelled effectively immediately and that cessation of services shall remain in effect until after the general election period, when hopefully this madness would have subsided and we would have brought to an end this unwarranted blotch on our otherwise pristine record of peace, safety and tranquillity,” Skerrit said in a radio broadcast on Wednesday night.

Skerrit said also that the elections will take place as scheduled today, and hinted that the police and other law enforcement officials were adopting a stronger stance against those persons blocking roads and burning tyres and debris.

“Let us be clear also that the intimidation of voters and other law-abiding citizens in this country will stop in the prelude to voting. I will not have lawless persons attempt to frustrate decent voters on the way to the polls or destroy the democratic process in Dominica.

“Law enforcement officials have exercised as much restraint as is humanely possible. They have endured verbal abuse, physical abuse, threats of violence, injury and even threats of death. Many law-abiding citizens have been harassed,” Skerrit said, making reference to the various incidents posted on social media, including the verbal abuse of the Bishop of Roseau, Gabriel Malzaire and Cardinal Kelvin Felix earlier this week.

The roadblocks and fiery demonstrations are confined mainly to the northern villages of Marigot and Salisbury, considered the strongholds of the Opposition party and Skerrit said what was revealing is that in the incident involving the head of the Roman Catholic Church, the brother of the UWP leader, Lennox Linton, was “seen clearly on video”.

He said getting to the Douglas Charles Airport via the main road in Marigot was akin to walking the gauntlet and that the Bishop and other travellers “had to physically carry their suitcases along the streets, pass burning debris…as they endured the abuse of the supporters of the Opposition leader.”

The Roman Catholic church has since issued a statement condemning the verbal abuse of the two senior members of the church, saying it considers the incident to be “an act of disgrace and disrespect not only to head of the Catholic Church in Dominica but to the clergy and the lay faithful as well”.

Skerrit told the nation that he was disappointed that no apology has been forthcoming from Linton or the UWP to the Roman Catholic church on the abuse.

“It is clear that the leader of the Opposition, Mr Lennox Linton does not have it in him or what it takes for him to publicly apologise to His Lordship for the conduct of his brother and the UWP supporters.”

He said even if Linton does not like the bishop, “He should respect the office of the head of the Catholic church in Dominica. He owes His Lordship, the bishop, an unqualified apology for his brother’s conduct and that of his supporters.”

During the broadcast, Prime Minister Skerrit said the worst fears of the island as a result of the violent acts being circulated on social media as part of the strategy of the Opposition to disrupt the polls had started to materialise with cruise ships removing Dominica from their weekly calls.

“We have worked too hard, done too much and come too far to build a solid positive national reputation to have it destroyed by this lawless bunch,” Skerrit said, noting that on Wednesday, a cruise ship with more than 1, 400 passengers refused to dock here for fear of its passengers being affected by the violence.

He told the nation the decision of the cruise ship meant that many other stakeholders, including taxi drivers, tour operators and vendors have been affected and that the decision of other cruise lines to cancel stops here were very unfortunate.

He said the authorities here had been receiving calls from cruise line operators “querying the safety of their passengers and that the actions of the Opposition and their supporters were impacting negatively on the image of Dominica and ordinary Dominicans.

Skerrit, is leading his ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) into today’s general election, seeking an unprecedented fourth consecutive term in office.

In the 2014 General Election, the DLP won 15 of the 21 seats in the Parliament.

Ironically, this chaos and violence comes as Dominica was being named as a top destination for travellers in 2020 by leading travel publication Condé Nast Traveller.

Article published December 6, 2019 on thestkittsnevisobserver.com

Venezuela: Maduro Opposition at Odds with UN Electricity Plan

MIAMI (AP) — A proposal to address Venezuela’s electricity crisis with the help of the United Nations is proving a political hot potato for Nicolás Maduro’s opponents.

On Tuesday, the opposition-controlled National Assembly at the last minute scratched a schedule debate on a $350 million credit from a regional development bank to supply emergency power to areas in Venezuela that have been in the dark from blackouts for months.

The project’s promoters accuse opposition hardliners of playing politics with Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis while ignoring the plight of millions of Venezuelans who urgently demand solutions to everyday travails as the fight to remove Maduro drags on.

“We can’t condemn millions of Venezuelans to life without power while we wait for Maduro to give up power,” said Oscar Rondero, an opposition lawmaker from Nueva Esparta state, one of the most impacted by the blackouts.

The proposed loan agreement with the Development Bank of Latin America, or CAF, enjoys the backing of Maduro but still requires the National Assembly’s approval. The funding would be used to supply 1,206 megawatts of power — about half of its current output from diesel and gas-powered facilities— in four hard-hit areas as well as backup generators for hospitals nationwide.

The proposal puts the opposition, which considers the Maduro administration corrupt and illegitimate, in a difficult spot, said David Smilde, a Venezuela expert at Tulane University. It also lays bare divisions that have grown more embittered as the U.S.-backed campaign to oust Maduro loses its momentum, with many of his opponents exiled for fear of arrest.

“Supporting it would require tacit recognition of the Maduro government,” said Smilde, who is also a senior fellow at the Washington Office on Latin America. “But opposing it would mean denying Venezuelans a significant opportunity to improve the terrible conditions they are living in.”

To address those concerns, the U.N.’s development agency would be responsible for administering the funding in conjunction with an independent board comprised of representatives of Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaidó. No funds would be provided directly to the state-run utility Corpoelec, which is run by Maduro loyalists and widely blamed for the grid’s collapse.

If approved, Smilde says it could help foster closer cooperation between the two feuding sides to stem a crisis that has led more than 4.6 million Venezuelans to flee the country, including support for an “oil for food” deal that is increasingly being floated by policymakers and analysts.

Still, for some in the opposition, any attempt at cooperation with Maduro to address the country’s humanitarian crisis, however modest, smacks of treason.

“Is the legislative branch going to pretend everything is normal approving funding for an executive power that’s supposedly usurping power?” Pedro Urruchurtu, the national coordinator for the Vente Venezuela movement, said on Twitter following Tuesday’s legislative session.

Some experts have also questioned the wisdom of the project, considering it a patch-up that sets an exorbitant price for the sort of fast power generators that will be acquired to address the blackouts.

“This money can be spent better way,” said Jose Aguilar, a U.S.-based energy expert who has consulted for the opposition. “We shouldn’t settle for less.”

The loan proposal dates from March, when moderate opposition lawmakers gathered with their socialist counterparts at a forum sponsored by what’s known as the Boston Group.

The informal group came about in the wake of a 2002 coup as a way for Venezuelan lawmakers across the ideological spectrum, as well as Democrats and Republicans in the U.S., to rebuild trust following Hugo Chavez’s brief removal from power. Maduro was among its founding members.

More recently, the group was activated to secure the release of Joshua Holt, a Utah man arrested and held for almost two years on what were widely seen as trumped-up weapons charges.

Guaidó, who leads congress and is recognized as Venezuela’s rightful president by more than 50 countries, including the U.S., has yet to publicly comment on the debate.

But Rondero said that members of his Popular Will party have expressed misgivings, while the Justice First party — which controls the largest bloc in congress — opposes the bill outright.

In removing a scheduled debate on the loan deal from Tuesday’s legislative session, lawmaker Enrique Marquez said more time was needed to build consensus.

Article published December 5, 2019 on thestkittsnevisobserver.com