Green Light in Mariel Special Zone for Five Foreign Companies and Two Cuban Ones

Green Light in Mariel Special Zone for Five Foreign Companies and Two
Cuban Ones / 14ymedio
Posted on July 16, 2015

14ymedio, 15 July 2015 — Seven companies received approval to open
businesses in the port of Mariel and the nearby industrial area, as
reported Wednesday the Associated Press. Since late 2014, the green
light has been received by two Belgian companies, two Mexican, one
Spanish and two Cuban, which will be dedicated to food, chemicals,
logistics and automation.

Ana Teresa Igarza, Director General of the Office of the Mariel Special
Development Zone (ZEDM), told AP that more than 400 foreign companies
have been in contact seeking authorization. Of this total, only about 25
completed the documentation. "The first (investors) are the hardest,
when they begin to invest with more ease others see what they are doing,
but there is a step closer, she said.

The space to open will be in Sector A, an area of about 17.4 square
miles, where an esplanade is being built for the first two factories:
the Spanish company Hotelsa, dedicated to the manufacture and marketing
of food products and beverages for the hospitality industry, and the
Mexican company Richmeat, a producer of meat.

The Mariel Special Development Zone has a 2,300 foot quay at the port
and a railway line that will serve to both for cargo and to transport
workers.

The Zone, which opened in January 2014, currently offers employment to
328 workers, in addition to 4,000 working temporarily in construction.
Teresita Trujillo, a specialist in the office of the Special Zone
consulted by AP, estimates that about 70,000 jobs will be created.

Several US companies have already expressed interest in opening in
Mariel after the diplomatic rapprochement between Washington and Havana;
they include Cleber, from Alabama, which assembles tractors.

Source: Green Light in Mariel Special Zone for Five Foreign Companies
and Two Cuban Ones / 14ymedio | Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/green-light-in-mariel-special-zone-for-five-foreign-companies-and-two-cuban-ones-14ymedio/