Rowley: Sandals deal ‘in not too distant future’

He made the comment in the Lower House on Friday in response to a question from Couva North MP Ramona Ramdial who had requested an update on the Sandals Tobago project.

Rowley said there had been discussions between Sandals and Government’s team adding that Government has “put in place a special purpose vehicle and qualified individuals to negotiate the entry of Sandals into Trinidad and Tobago.” “Those discussions took place in April and continued into May and we are expecting a visit from Sandals in the very near future. It is my expectation that the discussions could be satisfactorily concluded in the not too distant future. As soon as such conclusions are obtained the national public would be advised.

The discussions continue as per an orderly fashion.” In June last year during a political meeting in St Joseph, Rowley had announced that a 750-room Sandals Resorts was earmarked for Tobago to boost the island’s tourism, generate revenue, jobs and foreign exchange. He had said that it was part of a tourism plan to diversify the economy.

Last November, CEO of Sandals Resorts Adam Stewart, who was the keynote speaker at the Chamber of Commerce Champions of Business Award Ceremony, said Sandals Resort in Tobago will be a “gold mine” for this country and the benefits include increased airlift and opportunities for local entertainers, farmers, transport companies and others to the tune of US $80 million.

In February, the Tobago Hotel and Tourism Association called for any concessions that will be extended to Sandals to be similarly extended to Tobago hoteliers but expressed optimism that Sandals’ marketing and airlift would boost the economy of Tobago. In the Caribbean Sandals has resorts in Jamaica, St Lucia, Bahamas, Antigua, Grenada and Barbados.