The giant Baha Mar resort complex slated for the Bahamas will resume construction in September, following a new agreement with the Bahamian government and the Export-Import Bank of China.

Bahamas Prime Minister Perry G. Christie said the US$3.5bn mega-resort – which is to include a Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, Rosewood at Baha Mar, Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar and SLS LUX at Baha Mar – will be completed and “sold to a world-class hotel and casino operator”.

The project was originally slated to be finished in 2014, but a series of hitches and legal battles – including a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in July 2015 – have led to numerous delays.

“For some 20 months, I have been continuously focused, day and night, on efforts to find a solution for the completion of the Baha Mar Project,” said Prime Minister Christie in a statement.

Christie said China Construction would finish the works and also resolve outstanding claims with its suppliers and subcontractors.

“The Baha Mar companies owed money to thousands of Bahamian creditors when they filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy,” Christie explained. “Under their Chapter 11 efforts, our people had little prospect of being paid anything. Under this agreement...funds will be made available to enable them to receive a significant part, and possibly all of the value of their claims.”