National debt to get bulk of Alfa Nero funds

The proceeds from the sale of the super yacht, Alfa Nero, will go towards

payments on the country’s external national debt.

So says Prime Minister Gaston Browne who stated that the government will

allocate as much as two-thirds of the funds left over from the sale of the vessel to

pay off external debts.

“The funds will be paid into the Consolidated Fund, and I know there may be

several creditors who are saying boy it’s a lot of money. However, we have already

decided that as much as two-thirds will go toward paying down external debts. I

have been told that the outstanding amounts owed by the vessel are in the region of

US$7 million with the remainder of over $100 million going towards reducing the

national debt,” PM Browne stated.

He reaffirmed the government’s commitment to settle all outstanding amounts

owed to local and other creditors for keeping the vessel afloat for more than one

year. These include the owners of Falmouth Harbour Marina, where it is moored,

the West Indies Oil Company for fuel, and other creditors.

The Alfa Nero was sold in a public auction that was televised LIVE for all the

world to see with participation from a representative of the clergy, Major Byron

Maxam, the private sector, Mr. Patrick Ryan, and the judiciary, Magistrate Dexter

Wason. The Director of Audit, Dean Evanson, and the Accountant General,

Ickford Roberts were also present to oversee the process.

PM Browne said he was quite proud of the highly transparent manner in which the

process was conducted. “I felt very proud about the process. Antigua and Barbuda

has shown the rest of the world how you can treat sanctioned vessels and how you

dispose of such a vessel in a very open and transparent way that is beyond

reproach, and I wish to thank all of the individuals who participated, including the

observers, the other government officials and the port manager, Darwin

Telemaque. This was LIVE on television, you can’t ask for anything more

transparent than that. It also shows that we have significant capacity in this

country,” he remarked.

The prime minister disclosed that he received a call stating that Antigua and

Barbuda has shown the world how to dispose of sanctioned vessels as this can now

be used as a roadmap for future developments anywhere in the world.