By News Americas Business Editor

News Americas, GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Mon. Nov. 10, 2025: Canadian mining powerhouse aris-mining-to-build-airstrip-for-14b-toroparu-gold-project-guyana is set to construct a 1,750-metre international-standard airstrip deep in Guyana’s Cuyuni-Mazaruni region, signaling a major step toward full-scale operations at its massive US$14.7 billion Toroparu Gold Project – one of South America’s largest undeveloped gold deposits.

The project, managed through Aris Mining’s local subsidiary, ETK Inc., is expected to deliver an average annual output of 235,000 ounces of gold over a 21-year mine life, along with an estimated 5 million ounces of gold, 4.9 million ounces of silver, and 260 million pounds of copper.

A Strategic Logistics Hub

According to Aris Mining’s Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) reported by Kaiteur News, the new airstrip will replace the existing one that sits within the footprint of the planned main Toroparu pit. The upgraded facility will be capable of handling larger aircraft, serving as a critical logistics and transport hub for personnel, equipment, and supplies.

The airstrip will span 60 metres in width, with a 70-metre safety boundary on both sides, designed in alignment with international aviation standards. It will run parallel to the prevailing southeast wind direction to ensure safe operations year-round.

Aris said the development will include two major security access points — one located along the main access road with truck parking, logistics and security offices, and a temporary aircraft hangar; and another at the processing plant, providing controlled entry between high-security mining zones and general access areas.

Government Partnership and Infrastructure Commitments

The Government of Guyana, through the Ministries of Natural Resources and Public Works, has finalized a road users’ agreement with Aris’ subsidiary, ensuring smooth access to the site. Under the arrangement, ETK will be responsible for maintaining and rehabilitating public roads leading to Toroparu.

The Toroparu project represents one of the largest foreign investments in Guyana’s mining sector and is expected to significantly boost local employment, logistics development, and regional infrastructure.

Billions in Economic Returns

The PEA projects that Guyana stands to earn an estimated US$3.4 billion in taxes and royalties throughout the project’s lifespan. This includes US$2.2 billion in income taxes and US$1.2 billion in royalty payments, based on a base gold price of US$3,000 per ounce.

Financially, the project is forecast to deliver an after-tax Net Present Value (NPV5%) of US$1.8 billion, an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 25.2%, and a three-year payback period — underscoring its strong profitability.

Under its Mineral Agreement with the government, Toroparu will pay 8% royalty on gold sales, 1.5% on silver, and 1.5% on copper, all deductible under Guyana’s 30% corporate tax rate.

From Exploration to Expansion

The Toroparu deposit was initially mined by Alfro Alphonso in 1997 and later explored by ETK Inc. under a joint venture with Alphonso starting in 1999. In 2020, ETK acquired full ownership of the property, paying US$20 million to exercise its option, while Alphonso retained rights to alluvial mining and site access.

ETK also holds an investment agreement with GO-Invest, granting tax exemptions on project-related imports — a measure aimed at accelerating development and improving cost efficiency.

A Boost for Guyana’s Gold Industry

Once operational, the Toroparu Gold Project is set to position Guyana as a leading gold producer in the Western Hemisphere, expanding its mining footprint beyond the traditional Omai and Aurora gold belts. The construction of the new airstrip underscores Aris Mining’s long-term commitment to developing Guyana’s resource potential under international environmental and safety standards, the company said.

News Americas, WASHINGTON, Fri. Nov. 7, 2025: Jamaica is set to receive a full $150 million payout under its World Bank backed catastrophe bond following the devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa – marking one of the largest single sovereign insurance redemptions in the Caribbean’s history.

The World Bank, (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, IBRD AAA/Aaa) confirmed that the payout was automatically triggered after third-party analysis by AIR Worldwide Corporation determined that the hurricane met pre-agreed parametric thresholds based on the storm’s central pressure and path, as reported by the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

An aerial view shows destroyed buildings following the passage of Hurricane Melissa, in Black River, St. Elizabeth, Jamaica on October 29, 2025. (Photo by RICARDO MAKYN/AFP via Getty Images)

The trigger activated the full redemption of Jamaica’s 2024 catastrophe bond, which provides the country with pre-arranged financial protection against major natural disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes.

Swift Financial Relief Through Innovative Risk Management

The $150 million disbursement underscores the strength of Jamaica’s disaster risk financing strategy, which has been recognized globally for its proactive approach. The country first partnered with the World Bank in 2021 to secure parametric insurance against storm events, later renewing and expanding coverage through a new 2024 catastrophe bond issuance.

“Jamaica’s comprehensive disaster risk management strategy and proactive approach serve as a model for countries facing similar threats,” said Jorge Familiar, World Bank Vice President and Treasurer. “This payout demonstrates how catastrophe bonds can efficiently transfer disaster risks to capital markets and ensure rapid liquidity when it’s needed most.”

Damage from Hurricane Melissa is seen at Sea Garden Beach resort, in Montego Bay, Jamaica on November 3,2025. Storm-ravaged communities in western Jamaica were facing dire straits November 2, 2025, days after record-setting Hurricane Melissa left towns demolished and at least 28 people dead across the island. (Photo by RICARDO MAKYN/AFP via Getty Images)

A Model For Financial Resilience

As one of the most disaster-exposed nations in the world, Jamaica has long championed innovative financial tools to strengthen its resilience. Catastrophe bonds allow governments to shift disaster-related risks from public budgets to global investors, ensuring that funds are available within days rather than months.

The World Bank Group said it is also preparing a broad support package for Jamaica, including emergency financing, reallocation of existing project funds, and targeted private-sector assistance through the International Finance Corporation, (IFC).

“Jamaica’s strong commitment to preparedness is now paying off – enabling the country to move swiftly from recovery to reconstruction,” said Susana Cordeiro Guerra, World Bank Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean. “This is not just about rebuilding what was lost, but about leapfrogging toward a more resilient future.”

Wider Caribbean Support Framework

An aerial view seen October 29, 2025 shows the destroyed Black River Market and surrounding buildings following the passage the previous day of Hurricane Melissa in Black River, St. Elizabeth, Jamaica. (Photo by RICARDO MAKYN/AFP via Getty Images)

The catastrophe bond payout adds to the recent record-breaking US$70.8 million disbursement made to Jamaica by the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF-SPC), the largest in the facility’s history. Combined, the two mechanisms have now mobilized over US$220 million in disaster insurance support for Jamaica in less than a month.

The Government of Jamaica has estimated that Hurricane Melissa caused between US$6 billion and US$9 billion in total damages, devastating infrastructure, homes, and livelihoods while claiming 32 lives. More than 600 educational institutions sustained damage during the passage of category-five Hurricane Melissa.“In the affected parishes, we have a little bit over 450 schools that have been affected, and that’s across the board – infant schools, primary schools, secondary schools and also eight tertiary schools. So far, we’ve seen estimates of 616 institutions having some kind of damage,” said Minister of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Senator Dana Morris Dixon.

By NAN Business Editor

News Americas, PUERTO PLATA, Dominican Republic, Fri. Oct. 24, 2025: Meliá Hotels International and Grupo Puntacana are expanding their footprint in the Dominican Republic with the launch of Meliá Bergantín Beach, a luxury resort that underscores renewed investor confidence in the country’s northern coast.

A new hotel is coming to the DR.

The development forms part of Punta Bergantín, a state-backed tourism and real estate trust designed to revive Puerto Plata as a major destination. The project – supported by Grupo Reservas and the Ministry of Tourism – covers more than 10 million square meters of coastal land and is being structured under a low-density, sustainability-first urban model, aligning with global ESG tourism trends.

At a groundbreaking ceremony on October 21st, Gabriel Escarrer, CEO of Meliá Hotels International, and Frank Elías Rainieri, CEO of Grupo Puntacana, were joined by Banco de Reservas President Leonardo Aguilera, Banco Popular President Christopher Paniagua, and Project Executive Director Andrés Marranzini Grullón.

The two conglomerates – among the Caribbean’s most influential tourism players – aim to leverage the Dominican Republic’s strong post-pandemic recovery and new infrastructure investments to diversify beyond the Punta Cana–Bávaro corridor.

A New Northern Anchor for Dominican Tourism

The Meliá Bergantín Beach will feature 400 rooms, integrating Meliá’s signature hospitality with new MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) infrastructure, multiple dining options, pools, a spa, and family-oriented amenities.

The resort is expected to serve as a flagship for Puerto Plata’s comeback – attracting international travelers, investors, and regional conferences, while generating hundreds of direct and indirect jobs.

“Puerto Plata has enormous potential to reassert itself as a global tourism destination,” Escarrer said in a statement. “With this project, we’re reaffirming our long-term commitment to the Dominican Republic and to sustainable development that benefits local communities.”

Rainieri added that the collaboration with Meliá “extends the vision of Punta Cana’s success story to the country’s north coast,” marking “the beginning of a balanced, nationwide tourism model.”

The Dominican Republic welcomed over 8.5 million visitors in 2024, a record high according to the Ministry of Tourism, and officials expect the Punta Bergantín development to further boost arrivals in 2026 and beyond.

Analysis By NAN Business Editor

News Americas, Georgetown, Guyana, Tues. Oct. 14, 2025: ExxonMobil’s Guyana President, Alistair Routledge on Monday claimed the company is “still operating in the red to the tune of around US$6 billion” in Guyana, as he retorted over to a question by three U.S. senators on the company’s tax breaks. So which number is closer to reality: $6 billion or $3.4 billion in losses?

The ExxonMobil Guyana offices at 86 Duke Street in Georgetown, Guyana. Photographer: Jose A. Alvarado Jr./Bloomberg via Getty Images

What Routledge Said

Speaking at Exxon’s Ogle, East Coast Demerara headquarters, Routledge told reporters that the NGO Oil and Gas Governance Network, (OGGN) may have misled U.S. senators about the company’s tax filings. He said that ExxonMobil Guyana is still operating with a negative cash flow of around six billion US dollars.

“We continue to be actually cash flow negative on an accumulative basis… we are probably still around six billion US dollars in negative cash flow as we look at the cumulative expenditures and cumulative revenues that we’ve seen from the Stabroek Block,” he told reporters.

Routledge asserted that in ExxonMobil Corporation’s 2023 and 2024 tax filings, there were no Guyanese tax credits included in either of those filings, “and you would recall that prior to 2023, we were not making profits here in Guyana, so there were no tax credits from that. Up until this point, there have been no Guyana tax credits used by ExxonMobil.”

The Alternative Figure: $3.4 Billion

But Exxon’s own Guyana website identifies a different figure: US$3.4 billion in red ink — even while acknowledging an accounting profit in 2024. According to Exxon’s 2024 financials:

Gross production rose sharply with the Prosperity FPSO, boosting revenue for all partners

Despite posting an accounting profit, the company said it remains “in the red” by US$3.4 billion

Exxon and its co-venturers have invested a cumulative US$55 billion in Guyana to date. This divergence begs the question: how can a company be both profitable on paper and yet claim to be billions in losses?

The Contractual Context

Under the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement (PSA), Exxon’s Guyana deal allows it to recover up to 75% of its share of oil revenue for cost recovery before profit payments begin. In practice, this means a large portion of early revenue goes to recovering the developer’s costs- capital, exploration, infrastructure – leaving little net profit early on.

Furthermore, financials for 2024 show:

Operating expenditures of GYD 477.6 billion

Depreciation/amortization at GYD 301.8 billion

Exploration, production, royalties also eat into margins

These mechanics help explain how Exxon could legitimately claim negative cash flow despite strong revenues.

Why It Matters for Guyana

The optics of a $6B loss vs $3.4B matters deeply for public trust, fiscal policy, and future licensing. Guyana has collected over US$6.2 billion in oil profits and royalties since 2020 – so when Exxon claims it’s in the red, critics say the narrative raises concerns about transparency and fairness. If Exxon can delay or reduce profit sharing through cost recovery claims, that changes the magnitude and timing of what Guyana as a partner actually realizes.

Bottom Line

Both $6 billion and $3.4 billion claims could contain grains of truth, depending on accounting methods, timing, amortization and recovery policies.

Routledge emphasized cash flow negativity and absence of Guyanese tax credits in filings.

Exxon’s public data insists on a lower loss figure despite profits.

The discrepancy boils down to methodology, timing, and cost recovery mechanics.

So, while the $6B figure commands headlines, the $3.4B estimate rooted in Exxon’s own reporting asks where did the almost three additional billion come from?. It’s really a question of how loss and profit are really defined.

By NAN Business Editor

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Thurs. Oct. 9, 2025: The South American CARICOM nation of Guyana is defying global economic gravity. According to the World Bank’s October 2025 Global Economic Prospects Report on Latin America and the Caribbean, it is the only country in the Americas forecast to record double-digit GDP growth through 2027.

The opening of the new Bharrat Jadgeo Demerara River bridge adds to the growth in Guyana. (DPI Image)

The report projects Guyana’s real GDP growth at 11.8% in 2025, jumping to 22.4% in 2026 and 24.0% in 2027, fueled by an oil and gas boom that continues to transform its economy. No other nation in the hemisphere comes close to those figures.

A Lone Outlier in a Slow-Growth Hemisphere

While Guyana soars, the rest of Latin America and the Caribbean will expand at far slower rates. The World Bank projects the region’s average growth at just 2.3% in 2025, edging up to 2.5% by 2027, restrained by weak investment, high borrowing costs, and sluggish productivity.

The top ten fastest-growing economies for 2025–2027 are as follows:

Rank Country 2025 Forecast (%) 2026 Forecast (%) 2027 Forecast (%) Key Growth Driver 1Guyana11.822.424.0Oil exports, infrastructure, FDI 2Paraguay4.23.73.7Agriculture, hydropower 3Argentina4.64.04.0Energy sector recovery 4Dominican Republic3.04.34.5Tourism, services, investment 5Costa Rica3.63.63.7Tech exports, green economy 6Panama3.94.14.1Logistics, services, canal expansion 7Suriname3.23.43.7Mining, oil projects 8Guatemala3.93.73.7Remittances, construction 9Grenada3.73.32.7Tourism, public investment 10St. Lucia3.92.52.1Tourism rebound

Guyana’s dominance is clear — growing at three to five times the pace of any other country in the region.

The Power Behind Guyana’s Boom

Since 2020, offshore oil discoveries have catapulted Guyana into the ranks of the world’s fastest-expanding economies. ExxonMobil and its consortium partners have already lifted daily output above 600,000 barrels, with projections to exceed one million barrels by decade’s end.

The government’s Natural Resource Fund (NRF) manages oil revenues to support infrastructure, health, education, and renewable energy projects. Massive road and housing programs, along with plans for a new gas-to-energy plant, are laying the groundwork for diversification including the just opened Demerara Harbour Bridge, renamed the Bharrat Jagdeo Demerara River Bridge.  The US$262 million engineering feat, Guyana’s longest and most advanced river crossing, now connects both sides of the Demerara River with 24/7 traffic, marking a turning point in national infrastructure. Constructed by China Railway Construction Corporation, the new structure replaces the venerable Demerara Harbour Bridge with four vehicle lanes, pedestrian and cyclist paths, and unrestricted river passage for ships. With foundations anchored by 658 piles, it is now the nation’s strongest bridge.

Economists warn, however, that sustaining momentum requires strong governance, transparent spending, and investment in human capital.

World Bank: Reforms Needed for “Transformational” Entrepreneurship

Beyond oil, the report calls for domestic reforms to attract investment and promote “transformational” entrepreneurship — high-growth firms that diffuse technology, create jobs, and raise productivity.

“The entrepreneur is the critical actor in development, identifying opportunities, innovating, and taking the risks needed to create value added and jobs,” said William Maloney, Chief Economist for Latin America and the Caribbean at the World Bank. “Creating more dynamic economies in Latin America and the Caribbean will require strengthening our pipeline of entrepreneurial talent, while undertaking the systemic reforms necessary for them to thrive.”

Despite enthusiasm for entrepreneurship, most firms in the region are micro or small enterprises with limited paths to scale — representing up to 70% of businesses in some countries. The Bank argues that a smaller group of high-growth, innovative firms could drive productivity and innovation but face familiar barriers: scarce financing, burdensome regulation, skills shortages, and weak infrastructure.

To foster private-sector-led growth, the report proposes a three-point reform agenda:

Invest in Human Capital – Improve education at all levels, expand managerial training, and align workforce programs with private-sector needs to fuel job creation.

Reform Business Regulation – Remove distortionary subsidies, modernize tax policy, and upgrade logistics, energy, and digital systems to reduce entry barriers.

Expand Access to Finance – With a quarter of firms credit-constrained, the Bank urges stronger risk-sharing, streamlined dispute resolution, and modern bankruptcy laws to support both lenders and entrepreneurs.

The Road Ahead

The World Bank warns that without reforms, much of the region risks stagnation. Yet, with the right mix of fiscal prudence, institutional reform, and inclusive entrepreneurship, Latin America and the Caribbean could reignite growth and competitiveness.

In that effort, Guyana’s success story — balancing oil wealth with long-term investment — may serve as both an inspiration and a cautionary tale for its neighbors.