The long-running saga of the US$3.5bn (€2.7bn, £2.2bn) Baha Mar resort complex in the Bahamas has taken another twist, after its developer announced that it has filed for US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

The “voluntary” move is designed to ensure the heavily-delayed resort opens as quickly as possible, said Baha Mar Ltd CEO Sarkis Izmirlian. The company hopes to arrange a "debtor-in-possession" financing arrangement of up to US$80m (€72m, £51m) to be able to pay for daily operations during the Chapter 11 process.

"I am committed to doing all I realistically can to move Baha Mar forward to be completed and opened successfully,” Izmirlian added.

"The general contractor (China Construction America) repeatedly has missed construction deadlines. This has caused both sizeable delay costs and forced the resort to postpone its opening. Unable to open, the resort has been left without a sufficient source of revenue to continue our existing business.”

Following the announcement, Baha Mar Ltd revealed that it has commenced a claim in the English High Court against the contractor’s parent company: China State Construction Engineering Corporation Ltd.

The claim asserts that, “among other things, the defendant is liable in respect guarantee and performance obligations related to the construction of the project, and that Baha Mar Ltd. is entitled to and claims against the defendant a variety of financial remedies.”

Located on 1,000 acres along 3,000ft of Cable Beach in Nassau, the Baha Mar has been masterplanned by Michael Hong Architects, with Dianna Wong leading the interior design. It is due to feature 2,200 luxury guest rooms across four hotels – Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, Rosewood at Baha Mar, Grand Hyatt at Baha Mar and SLS LUX at Baha Mar – along with the Caribbean’s largest casino, spanning 100,000sq ft (9,290sq m). In addition to the four hotels, the resort's Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course, ESPA spa, pools, beach experiences, and many restaurants and luxury shops will be part of the highly-anticipated resort experience.

The opening of the resort has been delayed multiple times, with the most recent launch date of 27 March, 2015, having passed without any announcement of a revised schedule.