By Kay Kimsong
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
Cambodian timber and agri-industry company Pheapimex and Chinese firm Jiangsu Taihu International formally agreed Wednesday to create Cambodia's 14th Special Economic Zone, to be located in Sihanoukville.
The firms announced that they expect the 250-hectare site to attract up to $4 billion in outside investment with the help of firms from China's northern Jiangsu province. Garment and electronics manufacturers are being targeted.
The new Special Economic Zone will be the second in Stung Haw district and the third in Sihanoukville. The Japanese Bank for International Cooperation is building one zone near the Shanoukville port and Attwood Import Export company is building another 192-hectare zone in Stung Haw.
"We will provide registration service and will sell or rent warehouse or factory plots with a reasonable price," Xie Jubao, the chairman of Jiangsu Taihu International, said at a signing ceremony in Phnom Penh.
Zhoi Wei, director of the European and African affairs division of the Foreign Affairs office in Jiangsu, said the province is encouraging its companies to expand operations globally.
"Southeast Asia is an important area for China to invest," he said, adding that the new deal springs from a trip by Prime Minister Hun Sen to China last month.
A Pheapimex official said on condition of anonymity that the two companies will spend $1 billion over the next three years on infrastructure and warehouses in the economic zone. The official could not disclose how much money was coming from China and how much from Cambodia, but added that the plan should create about 300,000 jobs directly and indirectly in Sihanoukville.
Attwood owner Lim Chhiv Hour said that she was worried by the competition that the new developers will bring, but said she already has 17 firms interested in her zone.
"I am quite worried...the difference will be in the marketing," she said. "My strategy is helping investors deal with under-the-table payments. Everything will be invoiced and there will be transparency."
The firms announced that they expect the 250-hectare site to attract up to $4 billion in outside investment with the help of firms from China's northern Jiangsu province. Garment and electronics manufacturers are being targeted.
The new Special Economic Zone will be the second in Stung Haw district and the third in Sihanoukville. The Japanese Bank for International Cooperation is building one zone near the Shanoukville port and Attwood Import Export company is building another 192-hectare zone in Stung Haw.
"We will provide registration service and will sell or rent warehouse or factory plots with a reasonable price," Xie Jubao, the chairman of Jiangsu Taihu International, said at a signing ceremony in Phnom Penh.
Zhoi Wei, director of the European and African affairs division of the Foreign Affairs office in Jiangsu, said the province is encouraging its companies to expand operations globally.
"Southeast Asia is an important area for China to invest," he said, adding that the new deal springs from a trip by Prime Minister Hun Sen to China last month.
A Pheapimex official said on condition of anonymity that the two companies will spend $1 billion over the next three years on infrastructure and warehouses in the economic zone. The official could not disclose how much money was coming from China and how much from Cambodia, but added that the plan should create about 300,000 jobs directly and indirectly in Sihanoukville.
Attwood owner Lim Chhiv Hour said that she was worried by the competition that the new developers will bring, but said she already has 17 firms interested in her zone.
"I am quite worried...the difference will be in the marketing," she said. "My strategy is helping investors deal with under-the-table payments. Everything will be invoiced and there will be transparency."
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