By Admin. Updated 7:00 a.m., Saturday, August 29, 2026, Atlantic Standard Time (GMT-4).
The Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines has confirmed for the first time in Parliament that land at Chatham Bay, Union Island, has been sold, with the transaction generating EC$52.7 million in capital revenue during the first four months of the 2026 fiscal year.
Prime Minister Dr. Godwin Friday made the disclosure on Thursday, August 27, while presenting an update on the country’s fiscal performance in Parliament.
He said the government’s overall deficit for the period April 1 to July 31, 2026, stood at EC$57.78 million, an improvement from the EC$125.32 million deficit recorded during the corresponding period in 2025.
“The higher capital revenue in 2026 mainly reflected $52.7 million that was received from the sale of land in Chatham Bay in Union Island,” Friday told Parliament. He also attributed lower capital expenditure to the completion of the modern port project in 2025 and reduced spending related to Hurricane Beryl recovery.
The statement appears to confirm long-running speculation over the future of the prized Chatham Bay property, one of the country’s most scenic coastal areas and the subject of a landmark legal battle that ended more than a decade ago.
The revelation comes months after former Prime Minister and current Opposition Leader Dr. Ralph Gonsalves publicly questioned whether the lands had been quietly sold.
For years, the official position was that the State had successfully reclaimed approximately 100 acres at Chatham Bay through legal proceedings under the Alien Landholding Act.
The dispute began in 2006 after the then Unity Labour Party administration initiated forfeiture proceedings against American-owned companies that had acquired the land but failed to fulfil a condition of their Alien Landholding Licence requiring them to invest EC$15 million in tourism development. According to Dr. Gonsalves, the investors never carried out the agreed project, prompting the Government to seek forfeiture through the courts.
The High Court ruled in the Government’s favour in 2007, a decision that was unanimously upheld by the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal in 2010. The investors later withdrew their final appeal before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council after negotiations over reimbursement of the original purchase price and interest, bringing the matter to a close.
Following that outcome, Dr. Gonsalves repeatedly described the case as a victory for the rule of law and for the protection of the country’s patrimony. In a letter circulated to the media in February 2023, while serving as Prime Minister, he recounted the legal proceedings and defended the Government’s handling of the dispute, arguing that the State had acted lawfully while also maintaining its reputation as an investment-friendly jurisdiction.
Until Thursday’s parliamentary statement, however, no public announcement had been made confirming that the recovered lands had since been sold.
Friday did not identify the purchaser, state how much land was transferred, explain the intended development, or indicate whether environmental safeguards or public access arrangements formed part of the agreement.
Chatham Bay is widely regarded as one of the Grenadines’ premier natural attractions. The area is also environmentally significant, providing habitat for the endangered Union Island gecko and remaining a popular recreational beach for residents and visitors alike.
The Prime Minister’s disclosure is therefore likely to intensify calls for greater transparency surrounding the transaction, including the identity of the buyer, the terms of sale, the proposed use of the property, and how the proceeds will be utilised.
While Parliament has now been told that EC$52.7 million was received from the sale, many of the details surrounding one of the country’s most valuable parcels of public land remain unknown.
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