By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The BISX-listed operator of Nassau’s main commercial shipping port is projecting it will beat revenue and operating income forecasts for its present 2026 financial year by double-digit percentages with container volumes breaching the 150,000 mark.

Arawak Port Development Company (APD), manager of the Nassau Container Port, told shareholders in its just-released 2025 annual report that as at end-August 2025, two months into its current year, it has already revised upwards its forecast for twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) volumes for the full year. It is now predicting a 4 percent increase above the initial 146,000 projection for the full year.

“While there are numerous projects scheduled to begin or continue in financial year 2026, such as the Ritz Carlton, GoldWynn 2, University of The Bahamas dormitories, Royal Caribbean, Albany condos, Lyford Cay condos, Venetian Village, Bahamas Grid and Island Power Producers, management remains cautious and does not anticipate a significant increase in project volumes in financial year 2026 compared to those experienced in financial year 2025,” APD wrote.

“Total market volumes are projected to be approximately 146,000 TEUs for financial year 2026, which is consistent with the budgeted volumes for financial year 2025.” However, these figures appear to have been revised upwards following APD’s performance over the first two months of its 2026 reporting period.

“As of August 31, 2025, Nassau Container Port’s TEU volumes, are projected to close the year approximately 4 percent ahead of budget,” APD added. “Total revenues are anticipated to exceed the budget by approximately 15 percent, and EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation) is on track to be 18 percent above budget, with an EBITDA margin of 55 percent.”

No dollar figures were provided for APD’s budget forecasts and internal estimates, so the actual scale of the jump in revenues and operating income is difficult to determine, although the double-digit percentage rises are the equivalent of a material improvement. And direct operating margin was three percentage points ahead of budget for the two months to end-August 2025.

“Our direct operating margin (DOM) for financial year 2025 remains strong and stable at 41 percent, and slightly above the budgeted DOM of 40 percent. For the two-month period ended August 31, 2025, our DOM further improved to 46 percent, which is 3% percent more than our budgeted DOM for the same period,” APD added.

However Dion Bethell, APDs president and chief financial officer, again used the annual report to remind investors and the Government - which itself holds a 40 percent equity ownership interest in the company - that the failure to repair Nassau Harbour’s western breakwater remains the greatest risk for its “safe operations” and the smooth functioning of New Providence’s import economy.

He added that the breakdown in protection provided to commercial shipping carriers when docked, or trying to dock, at Arawak Cay had once again “crippled cargo operations” on days when there was bad weather and rough seas.

“The western harbour breakwater remains the single most consequential infrastructure risk for safe cargo operations. This year, severe weather once again underscored the urgency of action, crippling cargo operations while cruise vessels remained relatively unaffected, and causing significant coastal erosion along Junkanoo Beach, one of the region’s busiest tourism sites,” Mr Bethell said.

“APD continues to advocate for an immediate public–private solution. Every season of delay compounds risk for vessels, crews and commerce. Addressing this vulnerability will be a defining act of national resilience.” Tribune Business reported earlier this year that five vessels were forced by the deteriorating harbour breakwater to wait out at sea during the three months to end-December 2024.

The breakwaters, which function as Nassau harbour safeguards have been in place since Majority Rule some 56 years ago but are “no longer able to absorb the energy from the ocean” especially at high tide or during rough weather.

This impacts “the channel” cargo vessels use to access Nassau’s major commercial shipping port, and complicates the work of APD staff, service providers and ship’s crew in unloading and working on the boat. The “roll”, or pitch, of cargo vessels in such circumstances can be between “six to ten feet up and down”, which is unforgiving on APD’s cranes and other equipment and results in significant wear and tear.

While vessels can still safely enter and exit the Arawak Cay-based port, APD has previously said it “won’t compromise” on safety. Mr Bethell, in a September 2025 response to this newspaper’s inquiries, said: “We note that the Government of The Bahamas has allocated for the repair of the breakwater in the 2025-2026 Budget. We have not received any recent official status update on this project from the Ministry of Works.”

Michael Maura, APD’s chairman, writing in the same annual report, said the company “will play a catalytic role” in the introduction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuelled electricity in The Bahamas. The BISX-listed container port operator has already invested $5m in Island Power Producers, the entity that will supply 60 mega watts (MW) of LNG-fuelled electricity to cruise ships docked at Nassau Container Port, plus a further $1m in Bahamas Grid Company, which owns and manages New Providence’s electricity grid.

Island Power Producers’ LNG will arrive at APD’s facilities and be transferred to its power plant, which is being constructed on an adjacent site at Arawak Cay. “Looking ahead, APD is developing an incentive framework to reward partners who invest in low-carbon technologies — helping to shape a logistics culture that is as environmentally conscious as it is operationally sound.

“As part of The Bahamas’ energy transformation, APD will play a catalytic role in the introduction and transshipment of LNG. The port will serve as the primary receiving facility for LNG supplies to a new, smaller-scale power plant adjacent to the port, and as a hub for LNG shipments to the Family Islands, including Eleuthera and Abaco.

“This new operational stream aligns with the nation’s drive to reduce dependency on diesel and heavy fuel oil while providing APD with a new, sustainable revenue source that supports ongoing operations.”

Detailing its performance during the 12 months to end-June 2025, APD said: “For the year ended June 30, 2025, Nassau Container Port had processed 146,167 inbound/outbound twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs). This represents a 3 percent increase in container volumes over financial year 2024 volumes.

“This steady rise in container throughput reflects ongoing demand across both domestic and project-related cargo segments. In addition to containerised cargo, vehicle volumes totalled 19,299 units in financial year 2025 compared to 19,750 in 2024, representing a 2 percent decline compared to the prior year and 11 percent below the budgeted level of 21,750 units.

“The variance primarily reflects lower import demand across vehicle categories following a period of elevated volumes in the prior year. Conversely, break-bulk and bulk tonnage increased significantly, reaching 417,947 tons compared to 340,987 in 2024, which represents a 23 percent year-over-year increase and exceeded the budgeted level of 412,000 tons by 5,947 tons or 1 percent,” APD added.

“This strong performance was supported by continued demand for construction materials and project-related cargo linked to infrastructure and real estate developments across New Providence.”