4 months ago
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Innovative Energy Group Limited, IEG, formerly known as Ciboney Group, is entering into the distribution of electric golf carts across the region to augment its energy business.
The group earned $100-million profit for its third quarter ending February 2025, a turnaround from more than $4 million in losses the previous year, amid continued buildout of the shell operation it acquired and rebranded.
Innovative Energy said it now has an exclusive dealership agreement with Tara Golf Carts, based in Xiamen, China, to market their electric golf carts in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean.
“This dealership will facilitate IEG’s deployment of PV solar charging infrastructure for the golf carts we sell,” the company said in its third-quarter financial report. PV is short for photovoltaic.
The group finalised the plans to distribute the golf carts on February 21 but did not release a market forecast. A representative of IEG said the market exceeds over 10,000 carts “between golf courses, hotel resorts and other businesses with large acreages to service”.
There are about a dozen golf courses in Jamaica and “121 courses across 24 islands”, according to an academic paper in 2017 titled ‘Impacts of Climate Change on Leisure Sports Golf Tourism For the World Leisure Sports Foundation Congress’, written by John Nauright, Anand Rampersad and Martha Honey. Current online searches put the number between 200 and 250 courses. Each course typically maintains a fleet of 50 to 100 golf carts.
“We remain optimistic about IEG’s growth trajectory, especially with the recent acquisition of IECL and the securing of the EV golf cart dealership. This is one way we are seeking to diversify our revenue stream,” said Innovative Energy in its newly released financial report for the February quarter.
IECL, an operational company owned by related parties, was acquired by Innovative Energy last November, resulting in the first full operational quarter of the newly enlarged group.
“Given the completion of the IECL acquisition transaction on November 1, 2024, the year-to-date consolidated results reflect four months of the subsidiary’s performance,” Chairman Nigel Davy said in the preface to the financials.
Effective April 14, the board appointed Dr Conrad Miller as its president and CEO. Davy, who previously performed the role of chief executive, will continue as executive chairman and focus on driving business development.
Innovative Energy acquired IECL for $2.8 billion. The deal grants Innovative Energy control over the IECL’s assets, liabilities and operations. The subsidiary assets, however, total $332 million, which resulted in some $2.5 billion in goodwill or intangible assets.
“This intangible value will continue to be reassessed periodically, with external auditors reviewing and confirming it at the end of each financial year,” Innovative Energy said.
“The acquisition transaction involved issuing debt instruments and additional equity in IEG,” stated the financials.
The former shell operation now sports short-term loans to related parties of $970 million and $1.7 billion in long-term borrowings.
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