Developers who lost out the first time around for the Morgan's Harbour project are understood to have been given a second chance to put a deal together.

BEAM Ltd., who were runners up in 1997 when the contract was awarded to Morgan's Harbour Investment Ltd, have been handed an exclusive "window'' to pull their deal together, it has been claimed.

BCM McAlpine boss Alan Burland, of BEAM Ltd, and Development and Opportunity Minister Terry Lister were both unavailable for comment yesterday, but it is known the contract was set up after the collapse of the MHIL deal.

The consortium is understood to have a time period of 90 days to put together a plan in order to gain the exclusive right to develop the former US Naval Annex in Southampton.

BEAM was runner-up in the original contest -- it offered a golf course designed by world-class Tom Fazio and three-times Masters champ Nick Faldo as visiting pro.

The development also included a hotel, marina, shopping village and retirement homes.

The news comes after several weeks of Government silence on the future of the 250-acre site, after Mr. Lister announced that a $300-million combined housing, golf, vacation and business centre scheme had been dropped.

He blamed the failure of MHIL to sign a formal agreement and the concern that the project did not remain in limbo for the breakdown of talks.

But it is emerging that although MHIL were close to lining up the finance, Mr.

Lister gave them an unrealistic window of two to three weeks to finalise the investment -- which they were not able to do.

Despite repeated calls to his office, the Minister has remained silent on the project since issuing a statement on the eve of Cup Match weekend.

But last night, Shadow Development and Opportunity Minister Allan Marshall called on Mr. Lister to come clean about the reasons for the collapse of the deal.

"He is hoping that as time goes on this thing will die away -- it won't die away,'' Mr. Marshall said.

"I consider this to be the biggest failure of the new Government, to lose a $250-million project for this country is tantamount to treason.

BEAM Ltd. given 90 days "I have been waiting for some time for a statement on this. For a Minister to come in and within eight months lose a project that was within arm's reach is appalling -- he should be ashamed.

"They (the Government) have got nothing to say and they are avoiding saying anything because they have got egg all over their face.'' The MHIL resort was to be backed by overseas finance and $3.5 million had already been spent on site surveys and preparation work. The group was also committed to paying for the clean up of oil left on the site.

Mr. Marshall said he had no problem with allowing the second choice developer to have a crack at the project, but he bemoaned the loss of the experience that MHIL would have brought to the table. And he said the indications were as late as June that the MHIL plan was moving along "very nicely'', pointing to Ministerial involvement as part of the downfall.

"The Minister seems to have got too involved,'' Mr. Marshall said. "He should have left it to the Bermuda Land Development Company.''