Above: officials at the ceremony in Nassau (BIS Photo/Peter Ramsay)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

Construction of the casino tower at the multi-billion-dollar Baha Mar project in the Bahamas reached the 100-foot mark this week.

The project has signed a number of hotel partners, including Hyatt and Rosewood.

“The many job opportunities being created for Bahamians during construction and perhaps, more importantly, the several thousand permanent jobs which will be created when the resort opens, bodes well for the country’s future economic growth,” Bahamian Prime Minister Perry Christie said. “I am optimistic and will work assiduously with the developer to ensure that more and more Bahamians will benefit from jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities as this exciting project moves forward.”

Christie said he expected that the project would soon be able to announce the selection of a “major casino partner.”

He pointed to what he called a “favourable” reaction, both domestically and internationally, concerning the recent decision of Malaysian firm Genting to operate a casino at the Bimini Bay Resort on the island of Bimini.

“That is why we in this current government are so concerned and have really and truly underlined our expectations that we will soon be joined by an international casino partner of renown,” Christie said.

The project is being funded and constructed by China, and several Chinese officials were on hand for a ceremony marking the construction milestone, led by Chinese Ambassador to the Bahamas Hu Shan.

Tom Dunlap, executive vice president at Baha Mar, said he hoped to have another celebration when the project reached 200 feat, along with reaching several other milestones.