A $100 million Belize dollar project to build a cruise ship terminal for the Carnival Corporation in the Port Loyola area was launched this morning.
For Carnival which is the largest cruise company in the world it will be their biggest project yet: big for Carnival and massive for government. And for the Musa administration, the $100 million investment will be the cornerstone investment of this term, a term beset by fiscal constraints and limited capital spending.
With all that on the line, the A-list including 8 cabinet ministers, religious leaders, and the business community came out for this morning's project launch and 7NEWS was there.
[Prime Minister Hon. Said Musa, Carnival's Vice-President Giora Israel, and Belize Ports Limited's Luke Espat break bottle of champagne on a bell]
It's heady symbolism - but still it's hardly enough for a project that will define the future of cruise tourism, Belize City, and in no small sense, the fate of this second term Musa administration. Carnival Cruise Line and Belize Ports Limited are partnering to build a $100 million dollar cruise terminal in the depressed urban area of Port Loyola.
It is a substantial investment and one which Prime Minister Hon. Said Musa says could be the most significant of his administration.
Hon. Said Musa, Prime Minister
"It's a beautiful morning and I think this is a beautiful project. It's a very substantial project that I think will be of tremendous benefit to the people of Belize, particularly the people of Port Loyola and Southside Belize City."
The project, which will cost Carnival US 50 million, is their biggest single investment in a port of call. Vice-President Giora Israel says for the world's largest cruise company the decision was easy once he met Ports Belize Limited's Chairman Luke Espat.
Giora Israel, Vice-president Carnival Corporation
"I met Luke Espat in March of last year and I couldn't help it, I almost fell in love with him. He is a very charismatic person."
And then Giora says Carnival fell in love with the idea of the US $50 million port.
Giora Israel,
"Well it is our biggest investment in any port of call ever. And why it costs so much? Well we already have calls here but there is a need to do some dredging which costs a lot of money to do; but that is the cost of doing it right. It's a very expensive investment but we feel very confident in the future of Belize and we hope that this is a marriage for many many years because once we put our money here, we will keep on coming."
This is the design of the cruise terminal on which construction should start within the next couple months. It should be finished by middle of 2006. And once complete PM Musa says the 240 ships and their 535,000 passengers will be an inestimable boost to the south side.
Hon. Said Musa,
"It will create a lot of jobs, a lot of business, and new business activity. It will serve as a catalyst, a synergy that will spur the real development that we want to see particularly here on the Southside of Belize City."
And while there was champagne and celebration at the site of the new cruise terminal today; there is the other tourism village - the one on Fort Street, which has a paper - an exclusive contract to disembark tourists. It is an exclusive contract, which Prime Minister Musa admits exists but one which he says cannot stand in the current environment.
Hon. Said Musa,
"There is such an agreement. We are not disputing that. What I'm trying to suggest to you, what I'm telling you is that facts change, circumstances change and all the parties who want to continue making money, who want to continue investing in Belize realize that you have to adjust with the changing circumstances and I believe we are in that situation now."
Keith Swift,
"So Mr. Prime Minister - not wanting to put words in your mouth - clear this up for me: are you suggesting that Royal Caribbean had an exclusive contract and they agreed to basically…give it up?"
Hon. Said Musa,
"No man you are putting words in my mouth now…"
Keith Swift,
"…Okay so explain it to me then."
Hon. Said Musa,
"What I am telling you is that there is an agreement with Royal Caribbean. At that time the agreement only contemplated tendering for cruise ships but now we are looking at a new circumstance, a new scenario and I am telling you that I am convinced there will be no conflict between that agreement and this present project."
And for today at least Carnival Cruise Line's vice-president was equally convinced.
Giora Israel,
"We announced our project on June 6th of last year, many months before Royal Caribbean did their deal - several months - 4 or 5 months. It shouldn't have been a surprise to them that we were going to build this project. We believe however that their exclusivity, and I believe the government believes the same, relates tenders. So if have ships in the future that will be requiring tenders, because there is no capacity, we will go to the village. So we will not accept tenders here. We believe their exclusivity for tenders is an agreement that they've reached. I am not privy to that agreement, I haven't seen, I have only heard about but this is a matter that the government feels very comfortable about. You wouldn't have had half of the government here today publicly signing this agreement with us if they didn't feel comfortable about it. And we hope and believe that Royal Caribbean will not sue the government, the city, or the tourism board."
Keith Swift,
"In the agreement is there a 'if' class? If they do decide to sue?"
Giora Israel,
"There is no what if. We are going forward. This is already reclaimed land and we are starting to work. This is not a secret. We are proud of this. The government is proud of this. Our intention is not to do harm to any other investor or company. We just need to take care of our business. The government recognizes that these ships cannot keep on staying four mile out at sea, it makes no sense."
But this solution will mean millions more in dollars and cents for Carnival and its up to these politicians to make sure Belizeans benefit meaningfully form it.
Once completed Carnival expects to control 58% of the cruise market in Belize bringing 535,000 passengers annually to their new terminal.
And those passengers are in addition to thousands more that will continue to dock at the Fort Point Tourism Village. With all those tourists coming to Belize we had to ask Prime Minister Musa when is plenty just too much?
That's a pressing issue, but first the prime minister had to answer why his Minister of Tourism was conspicuously absent at this most important tourism project.
Keith Swift,
"Prime Minister comment on how on such an important day and at an important event the Minister of Tourism is absent."
Hon. Said Musa,
"My understanding is…in fact the Minister requested leave from me that he had to be out of the country this week?"
Keith Swift,
"How will the head tax be distributed?"
Hon. Said Musa,
"That matter is being resolved with the BTB."
Keith Swift,
"The Belize city council has said they want in on the head tax from this new cruise terminal…."
Hon. Said Musa,
"I believe that as you know the money is shared between the cruise lines, the BTB and the PACT. The city council has been making a justified concern about the need for the city to receive a portion of the tax but all these things are being worked out."
Keith Swift,
"Are we allowing too many tourists to come to Belize? When is enough - too much? Aren't we stressing our natural resources?"
Hon. Said Musa,
"I think the more relevant question to ask is how many tourists from the cruise ships we allow to go to the environmentally sensitive areas of the country. In other words there is no problem with a million or more tourists coming to the mainland country of Belize. What we need to ensure is that we space out the tourists utilizing our cayes, such as Goff's Caye, there needs to a cap on that for the very reason you are raising. Those are the things we should look at, not at the overall numbers but how many are allowed to these very sensitive ecological sites and I think once we work that out there should be no problem with numbers coming off the ships."
After this morning's launch at the project site, the prime minister held a private luncheon for 40 guests on board Carnival's Elation.