Excellent analysis. Cable a once wondrous company could very well be crushed by its debt obligations and not survive. They are at the mercy of its bankers, no more issuing preference shares as the market is tapped out. It is time for real answers and not the “ spin” management has been feeding shareholders these last two years, who cares if revenues are increasing and at an all time high if expenses are increasing even faster and there is quarter after quarter of losses.

I suspect the first quarter statement which should have been released by now is more red ink, conveniently it has not been approved by the board of directors so is unavailable for this AGM tonight, miraculously it will be available tomorrow! See the notice posted below by the Jamaica stock exchange:

Cable Bahamas Limited (CAB) has advised that its First Quarter Unaudited Financial Statements have not yet been approved by their Board of Directors. CAB states that it is anticipated that the Board of Directors will approve its quarter one unaudited financials, which will be submitted to the Jamaica Stock Exchange no later than November 17, 2017.

Emera has forced this through at every quarter with no regard for Bahamian minority shareholders. It has been a process that has not been independent, transparent or fair. It claims it was approved by “ independent” directors, one of whom is Michael Moss the former chairman of BEC and current director of ICD. How can he possibly be independent if he is paid an annual fee from Emera as a director?

It is said KPMG has reviewed the offer and deemed it fair. How can KPMG be independent and fair if it has been paid by Emera to conduct this review?

I contacted CFAL about this offer and they pitched to me how Fair it was and actively encouraged me to accept the DRs, they failed to mention of course that it was subject to a 25% tax. CFAL happens to be the manager and contact for this proposed offer. How are they independent and how can their advice be trusted when they too have been compensated by Emera as manager?

This has been forced through at every point. Emera has spent so much money and forced this through because they know these shares are worth so much more than $8.85. If they paid $8.20 for 50 % of ICD in 2008 when the GBPC had old inefficient engines and a dilapidated infrastructure how in hell in 2017 after a new modern efficient plant and completely new transmission infrastructure can the shares only be worth $8.85. It defies logic, but this is what happens when a dishonest company has systematically suppressed the share price by refusing to pay fair dividends. Who will stand for Bahamians?

Will this government truly protect minority investors? How do you empower Bahamians if foreign corporations are allowed to act in this way? I call on the govt to demand a truly independent review of this transaction and either block this deal entirely or force Emera to increase its buyout offer to truly compensate Bahamian investors for what these shares are worth.

Mr. Collins should save his lies for unsophisticated shareholders who do not know better. This is absolute hogwash. The reason the share price has not risen over $8.20 over the past ten years is that Emera has suppressed the dividend that could and should have been paid to Bahamian shareholders. They knew full well that if they kept the dividend yield at 2% or lower the share price would not increase. Now that debt has been paid down and massive equity built up in the company Emera wants to buy thes shares on the cheap. It is stealing without a gun. They are even trying to avoid paying the paltry dividend that is due now with this buyout.

Emera has a stated dividend payout rate of 73% and the regulated profit of ICD is 8.5 million per year. With 10 million shares outstanding that is an EPS of .85. 73 % of that is a dividend payout of .62 per share. This is what Bahamian shareholders have foregone all these years with Emera never paying more than .14 per share per year. What an absolute ripoff. If this was paid out the yield would be driven down to at least 4% which equates to a share price of $15.50. This is what these shares are actually worth and Emera knows it, so they want it on the cheap.

We need the govt to block this deal or at the least stand up for Bahamian shareholders and make a emera substantially increase this buyout to a fair price. The FACTS above show Emera is trying to steal these shares at $8.85.

Excellent move, long overdue. What a wonderful legacy this will be for the prime minister.

The evidence proves the former PLP administration was corrupt to its core, and now with the former DPM as leader of the PLP they call that change. The PLP should have voted in new leadership, until they do it is hard to see the PLP returning to governance, you can not appoint the Fox to oversee the hen house and not expect the hens to be eaten.

Emera is trying to strong arm Bahamian shareholders and force us to sell our shares for far less than they are worth. Since the completion of the new power generating plant in 2012 Emera has paid a bare minimum of dividends all the while using profits to pay down debt. Now that it has years worth of equity ( paid for in reduced dividends to Bahamian shareholders) they want to buy out shareholders on the cheap. A regular dividend is due now but they want to even avoid paying that by buying out shareholders. This is very unfair.

We know emera has a stated dividend payout policy of 73% of net income. We also know the regulated profit of ICD is 8.5 million or .85 per share. Therefore ICD should be paying an annual dividend of .62 per share ( .85 x 73%), rather than the .14 we have been receiving all these years. Stock prices typically increase until the dividend rate is driven down to 4%, this equates to a share price of $15.50 per share. This is what each share of ICD is really worth. The government should defend the rights of Bahamian minority share holders unless the buyout price increases to at least $15 per share. Otherwise Emera is simply trying to hoodwink shareholders and steal these shares on the cheap.

As a Bahamian shareholder in ICD I hope Mr. Smith is successful in his legal challenge. Emera has not consulted minority shareholders in anyway and I feel I am being forced to sell my shares at a price that significantly undervalues what they are really worth. Which is incidentally why Emera has proposed this deal. These shares are worth at least $12-$15 per share based on future earnings.

In the similar Barbadian experience where Emera bought out minority shareholders in the local power company they paid a significantly higher premium for the outstanding shares. Indeed the original buyout offer was $25.70 Barbadian dollars for shares which at the time were listed on the stock exchange at $12 per share, a premium of 114%. Later this offer was increased to $33 Barbadian after pushback from the Barbadian govt regulators, so why should Bahamian shareholders settle for just a 33% premium.

Emera needs to treat minority shareholders fairly and regulators should demand that their buyout offer be increased significantly.

Yes, the party needs to change, and no Mr. Davis you are not change - you are the embodiment of the corrupt, crony PLP, move aside for real change.

Where to begin? Who cares if he cried, matters not one bit, what is he doing?, that is what matters. And I support this effort 100%. We have wonderful attributes as a people but we have some nasty, disgusting traits as well. Too much of our people are selfish hypocrites who love to play the victim and blame “foreigners “ for our own failings. And to say we are a Christian nation, what a laughable joke.

I have lived abroad for the last several months and have not locked my front door once, several nights the kids left the door wide open no problem. Try that in Nassau there is a good chance you will not live to see the dawn, and all these thugs are not Haitians, truth is most are Bahamians who have been reared and inculcated in the same nasty traits I mentioned. They are us, look in the mirror honestly and see the violent people we have become.

What if this eye had passed over Nassau instead of Dominica? These same selfish people would be begging on their knees for international help. It could have easily happened, just a slight shift in the high pressure system. It was not this year but our day is coming, if we do not help in this small way, who will help us?

The former and current leader of the PLP are pathetic. It is no wonder we are in the moral and economic mess we find ourselves, have these people no shame. The PLP needs completely new blood, brave Davis is no break from the corrupt legacy of this once honorable party.

It appears Mr. Christie is a voracious consumer of water, or has never paid a water and sewerage bill in his life. My bill from water and sewerage is $30 per quarter or $120 per year, so at this rate Christie has 166 years worth of unpaid bills, unbelievable.

The financial disclosure law to run for office should be amended to include public corporation bills, if any bill is more than $500 you can not run.