Jafza adds 415 firms in 10 months

Jebel Ali Free Zone, one of the fastest growing free zones in the world, continued to attract multinational companies, witnessing growth of 6.5 per cent in the number of new companies in the first ten months this year.

According to Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority (Jafza), 6,421 companies were based in the free zone at the beginning of this year which rose to 6,836 at the end of October this year.

The new 415 companies established their presence at the free zone in the first ten months include some of the world’s top multinationals such as Mitsubishi Corporation, PetroChina, JVC Professional, Proclad Strea-Flo, Schoeller-Bleckman and Isuzu Motors, among others.

Jafza, one of the fastest growing free zones across the world, began its 25th year of operations this year with 6421 companies. 2010 has also seen Jafza receive an impressive number of inbound projects. In the first 10 months of the year, 415 new companies joined the free zone. New arrivals so far have included Mitsubishi Corporation, PetroChina, JVC Professional, Proclad Stream-Flo, Schoeller-Bleckman and Isuzu Motors, among others.

Jafza last week celebrated 25 years of operations at a ceremony in Dubai.

Salma Hareb, CEO of Economic Zones World, Jafza’s parent company, said: “We have built on Dubai’s excellent infrastructure: seaport, airport and road network; essentially elevating it to the sophisticated hub that it is today. Our shared commitment and belief in what we can achieve has resulted in today’s success; and this commitment continues.”

Also this year, Jafza played an instrumental role in launching the Dubai Logistics Corridor, one of the world’s largest multi-modal logistics platforms linking Jebel Ali port and the Jebel Ali Free Zone to Dubai World Central, home to Dubai Aviation City/Dubai Logistics City and Al Maktoum International Airport. The Corridor will bring greater efficiency to Jafza’s existing, optimally configured supply chain infrastructure and is expected to significantly strengthen Dubai’s logistics credentials.

In a recent interview, Hisham Al Shirawi, Chairman of Economic Zones World (EZW), said business at the free zone's companies grew 15 per cent in the current year when compared to 2009.

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