Garmex Redevelopment Advanced, Morant Bay Urban Centre To Begin Shortly

Work continues apace on the redevelopment and expansion of the Garmex Freezone with three of four factory buildings under phase one to be delivered in short order.

The fourth building is expected to be completed by the end of July 2021.

In May 2020, ground was broken for the first of two phases for the project, being undertaken by the Factories Corporation of Jamaica (FCJ), which aims to fulfil the increased demand for production space.

Minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Hon. Everald Warmington, in his contribution to the 2021/22 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on May 5, said the project involves construction of four buildings totaling 90,000 square feet  and two buildings for small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) totaling 36,000 square feet.

“There has been a 100 per cent commitment for the spaces to be completed. Construction of the SME buildings will begin shortly with a three to four month construction period,” he said.

“In total, the Garmex Redevelopment and Expansion project will see the construction of 13 new buildings totaling 370,000 square feet, when completed,” he pointed out.

In addition to providing more space for manufacturing, agro-processing and warehousing, a commercial zone will be developed to accommodate fast food establishments, retail outlets and banking facilities to support the freezone and the wider community.

In the meantime, Minister Warmington told the House that construction of the Morant Bay Urban Centre is expected to begin shortly.

“Once completed, we will have some 436,000 square feet of space being made available,” he said.

Mr. Warmington said this development involves public-private partnerships.

The Morant Bay Urban Centre Company Limited was formed based on a joint venture agreement approved by Cabinet. FCJ and China Harbour Engineering Company Limited (CHEC) are the current shareholders of the company.

“The board and board committees have started meeting to take full control of the implementation of the project, which is awaiting the final funding and equity stake (22 per cent) approval from the board of the National Commercial Bank (NCB),” he said.

“We had received NCB Indicative Term sheet for funding, which was subject to a final bill of quantities. This was also subject to CHEC completing all detailed drawings, which has been done and submitted to the Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) for final approval,” Minister Warmington told the House.

He said that focus will be placed on fast tracking the construction of the stand-alone buildings to accommodate businesses such as fast food establishments, banks and other commercial entities.

Minister Warmington informed that a feasibility study conducted by Pricewaterhouse Coopers found that the commitment and viability of the Morant Bay development is even stronger than before the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19).