The modern Phoenix Park Industrial Estate, the first Belt and Road Initiative project in the Caribbean, is now a major attraction for foreign companies in Trinidad and Tobago.
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Designed and built by the Chinese company Beijing Construction Engineering Group (BCEG), the park has an area of around 580,000 square meters. Since a few weeks ago, it has been managed by the state-owned Evolving Technologies and Enterprise Development Company Limited (e Teck), part of the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Trinidad and Tobago.
The facility is also the first smart park in the Caribbean, featuring artificial intelligence and fifth generation (5G) mobile technology, big data and the internet of things.
The use of these technologies seeks to intelligently ensure comprehensive security, convenient access, facility management, energy efficiency and environmental protection.
In its first phase of construction, the park already has five standard industrial buildings of 5,000 square meters each. They provide production and operational space for the first companies to set up in the area, near the port of Point Lisas, in the center-west of the Caribbean country.
It is also fully serviced with water, electricity, gas, communications, wastewater treatment and green belts.
BCEG's deputy general manager in Trinidad and Tobago, Wang Tao, said in statements to Xinhua that "our company hopes to establish a new business model that integrates design, construction and investment promotion, with the successful implementation of the Phoenix Park project and replicate this model in neighboring countries."
According to the Phoenix Park Project Manager, BCEG has been able to introduce four Chinese companies, while several more have expressed interest in setting up shop.
Wang noted as well that in this way they seek to expand the investment territory for Chinese companies, as well as to promote the transformation and improvement of BCEG for a high quality performance in international business.
For his part, Sekou Alleyne, president of InvesTT, the national investment promotion agency aligned with the Ministry of Trade and Industry, commented that there are more than 10 local and foreign companies interested in investing in the new facility. "What interests investors most is the proximity to the port and the infrastructure of the park," said Alleyne.
Meanwhile, e Teck vice president Daniel Duncan outlined the importance for Trinidad and Tobago of expanding investment possibilities beyond the power and gas sector. "As the country strives to diversify and not rely solely on oil and gas, this mode of development is very important, hence the raison d'être of the Phoenix Park industrial park, where high value-added light industry is favored," he said.
The first company established in Phoenix Park has been SUMMIT, a company created in 1994 in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong and specialized in the production of suitcases.
"We came because of its strategic location, since our main clients are in the U.S. and transportation is convenient, plus in terms of policies, it is a tax-free zone, which is very attractive to us," said the head of the company in the Caribbean country, Huang Qiujiu.
SUMMIT also plans to install two production lines, although for now it has only started one, where 23 employees from the country work, a figure that should increase to at least 50 workers.
Trinidadian authorities expect that once the industrial park is at full operating capacity, 4,500 new jobs will be created. The Phoenix Park Industrial Estate is a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative in the Caribbean region, as well as an economic benefit for Trinidad and Tobago.