By the Caribbean Journal staff

St Lucia has broken ground on a new state-of-the-art financial centre at Pointe Seraphine.

The facility aims to save the government what could be millions in annual rental fees, as various departments in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs will be able to move to one central location.

“The honour for this investment properly belongs to the former government of St Lucia and, more importantly, former Prime Minister Stephenson King,” said Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony at the groundbreaking last week. “When all departments are located in one area, I am certain it will be far better to achieve accountability and allow for efficiencies to prevail in the operations of the government of St Lucia.”

Currently, the government pays $33.5 million in rental costs each year, Anthony said, what he called “a phenomenal amount of money.”

The six-story project, which is located on a 64,000-square-foot lot, is slated for completion in 22 months, under the so-called Built Operate Lease Transfer (BOLT) arrangement financed by St Lucia’s National Insurance Corporation.

Mathew Mathurin, director of the NIC, said the project represented a significant investment in the country during a time of global uncertainty.

“This project is not merely an investment for the National Insurance Corporation — it is just as important a contribution towards national development,” he said. “The project provides the dual benefit of generating economic activity as well as being a safe addition to the portfolio of the NIC.”

The centre is being touted as what will also be the greenest office building in St Lucia, built under guidelines from the US Green Building Council.

NH International Caribbean, Ltd is construction the project.