The guarantee has been slammed by opposition politicians, who point out that the national government of St Kitts and Nevis declined to guarantee the loan to West Indies Power (WIP), and that Nevis’ total annual revenue for 2009 was about $35m.

The loan, from the Export-Import (Exim) Bank of the United States, has yet to be approved by the bank’s board, a representative tells Recharge.

The