AS SHAREHOLDERS IN ALMOND RESORTS Inc. await word on one of the last remaining major assets of the company – Almond Beach Village – the tourism entity is reporting half-year losses of almost $3 million.
Almond Resorts Inc, a subsidiary of the Neal & Massy Holdings group, has been in asset disposal mode for almost two years after accumulating more than $70 million in debt.
The company recently released its six-month consolidated statement for the period ended March 31, 2013, and chairman Arthur Lok Jack and his deputy Gervase Warner said net losses for the period were $2.93 million down from $15.50 million in the red for the comparative period in 2012.
“The operations of the company currently consist of the maintenance of the Almond Beach Village, holding of an investment interest in Casuarina Beach Club Ltd, the administration of accounts and the payment of necessary interest costs, administrative salaries, insurance, property taxes, and general upkeep costs,” Lok Jack and Warner explained.
The two executives said the net loss for the half-year essentially reflected those costs as “there is no revenue being generated by the company”.
According to the chairman and deputy, the primary objective of the board of directors of Almond was to find a buyer for Almond Beach Village in St Peter and “several parties continue to express an interest in the acquisition”.
However, they noted that to date: “None of the interests [has] translated into acceptable offers but in the coming weeks the directors expect to progress to meaningful negotiations with a preferred buyer.”
They told shareholders, “Asset preservation has been the key theme during this period and we continue to minimize all costs up until the sale of either business or its assets.”
Warner and Lok Jack told shareholders that on January 10 this year, the company entered into an eight-month lease arrangement with Couples Resorts of Jamaica for Almond Casuarina Beach Hotel in Christ Church in which Couples has the option to purchase the property during the lease period.
Couples Resorts also has an option to extend the Casuarina lease for a five-year term following the expiration of the original short-term lease. Almond Resorts Inc holds a 35 per cent stake in Almond Casuarina. (GE)
