The government of Antigua and Barbuda is following through with its promise to allow residents of Antigua and Barbuda to buy into the West Indies Oil Company (WIOC).
On Wednesday, Cabinet made the decision to lower its shareholding in WIOC to 41 per cent of the shares, down from 51 per cent, and to sell that 10 per cent in the WIOC by way of a crowd-funding mechanism.
In the post-Cabinet press briefing, Chief of Staff in the Office of the Prime Minister, Lionel ‘Max’ Hurst, told the media that in an effort to “include the people of Antigua and Barbuda in this very successful enterprise,” the government will “enable citizens of Antigua and Barbuda to own a little piece of [the WIOC]” by “selling some of the [the government’s] shares.”
This approach, according to the Cabinet notes, “would allow multiple owners of the WIOC shares to be sold, rather than permit a single purchaser to gobble-up all the shares that will be offered for sale.”
And as explained by Hurst, the system will be conducted via a financial institution.
