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TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2023
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Gas stations seek ‘pennies on gallon for liveable wage’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net BAHAMIAN petroleum retailers yesterday revealed they are seeking a “pennies on the gallon” margin increase equal to 7 percent of the landed cost of fuel to achieve their version of a “ liveable wage”. Raymond Jones, the Bahamas Petroleum Retailers Association’s (BPRA) president, last night told Tribune Business that such an adjustment was critical “to allow us to survive as retailers” given that existing price-controlled fixed margins simply cannot cover a multitude of ever-increasing costs. Believing that “the Bahamian public will be OK to absorb a few cents more” on the per gallon cost of gasoline, he provided several insights into the increasing hardship faced by many gas station operators due to an inflexible business model that has left many unable to break even let alone enjoy a profit. Mr Jones said turnover-based Business Licence fees have almost doubled year-over-year due to last year’s spike in global oil prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which saw gas prices peak at around $7.20 per gallon during the 2022 first
Sir Franklyn ‘more confident’ than ever gas woes solved By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
BAHAMAS PETROLEUM RETAILERS ASSOCIATION’S (BPRA) half. Noting that his fee has increased to almost $25,000, he estimated that “99 percent” of the Association’s members will be unable to make payment by this Friday’s March 31 deadline and will be seeking to agree payment plans. Speaking after the Association’s executive committee met yesterday to discuss their next move, after receiving no firm proposal or request for a further meeting with the Government following their first encounter two weeks ago, Mr Jones
• Want margin rise equal to 7% of landed fuel cost • Feel ‘public will be OK to absorb a few cents more’ • Business Licences double; dipping SEE PAGE B4 into pensions
Bahamas First sees 10% motor vehicle claims rise By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
PATRICK WARD
BAHAMAS First’s top executive yesterday that motor vehicle claims increased “by at least 10 percent” in 2022 due to a return to pre-COVID traffic volumes combined with increased vehicle repair costs. Patrick Ward, the BISX-listed property and casualty underwriter’s
president and chief executive, told Tribune Business that besides traffic accidents returning to typical pre-pandemic frequency it also had to deal with the “impact of inflation” on auto repair costs. This, he explained, impacted both the cost of spare parts and new and used vehicles if the damaged auto proved a write-off and had to be fully replaced. “The cost of repairs increased, the
cost of supplies increased, and when you combine that with the frequency of accidents we expected to see an increase in the cost of claims simply because of those two factors,” Mr Ward explained. “We probably saw at least about a 10 percent increase in the outlay. “The supply shortages are starting to abate a little bit. We are seeing parts
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Receivables fear if VAT health claims change By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A PROMINENT doctor has voiced fears that medical practitioners will have to pay VAT if their patients cannot afford to do so should the Government persists with the changed tax treatment of
health insurance claims payouts. Dr Duane Sands, also the Free National Movement (FNM) chairman, told Tribune Business that “not many medical practitioners can afford to do that” and carry the VAT burden for patients who simply cannot afford to pay the full 10 percent levy on their cost of care.
“We have a number of people who have private insurance who don’t have a co-pay,” he explained. “The Government will come looking for a VAT payment from the patient that the provider may not have received. They may be responsible for paying a tax they may not have collected.
“It will leave practitioners to carry an unreasonable level of accounts receivables. Once it’s on my books they don’t care if the patient has not paid. They want their money. Imagine if I’m carrying a $10,000, $30,000, $50,000 receivable that may not be collectable.
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New Bay Street attraction targets 75 hires this week By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A NEW Bay Street tourist attraction is aiming to hire up to 75 persons by the end of this week following its Saturday recruitment drive, the Government’s top labour official said yesterday. Robert Farquharson, director of labour, told Tribune Business that
135-140 persons attended, out of just over 300 who pre-registered, at last Saturday’s job fair that his department held in conjunction with I Dream of Sugar. “The company was able to hire about 20 people on the spot,” he said. “The intention was to hire 75 people. They have about 55 people they are looking at, and second and third interviews have been
arranged for this week. I spoke to their operations manager and they are pretty pleased with the selection who showed up. They were able to hire 20 people, and are looking to hire about 55 people this coming week.” Mr Farquharson said the Department of Labour has also partnered with a cruise line
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ROBERT FARQUHARSON
FOCOL’s chairman yesterday said he is “more confident” than ever before that the push by Bahamian petroleum retailers for increased margins can be resolved “without adversely impacting the motoring public”. Sir Franklyn Wilson, speaking as the BISX-listed petroleum products supplier and its competitors were yesterday submitting their thoughts on the issue to the Government, again reiterated to Tribune Business his belief that the Bahamas Petroleum Retailers Association and its members have made “a credible case” for a margin rise. However, he added that there was “a lot to suggest” that the present pricecontrolled fixed margin “works” to some extent, and said there was nothing to prevent either the three oil companies - Esso, Rubis and Shell (FOCOL) - from seeking to seize market share by discounting and other commercial tactics. Asserting that “people find a way”, as such practices have been employed in the past, Sir Franklyn told this newspaper: “The position is that the oil companies will respond to the Government in a way that they each deem appropriate. I think today was when
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Predicts ‘no adverse impact’ for motorists Gas station operators now ‘at our wits end’ Willing to accept phasedin margin rises
SIR FRANKLYN WILSON the letter was supposed to go in. FOCOL is sending a reply, and I believe the others will be as well. “I have no doubt that the matter can be concluded without an adverse impact on the motoring public. I am more confident today than the last time I spoke to you. It’s not a crisis. It’s a desire that is creditable and reasonable, but it is not a crisis. This does not constitute a national crisis. Dorian was a crisis, Matthew was a crisis, COVID was a crisis. Everything is
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