The region’s first boutique-style logistics area that focuses on re-export and value-adding logistics activities will soon open in Bahrain, and is poised to attract companies looking to set up in the Bahrain Logistics Zone (BLZ).

A tenant attraction and screening process was defined to ensure a mix of value-adding local and international tenants and provide the foundation for the development of a regional logistics hub.

During the process, BLZ will compile a list and select local applicants through a book building process which will gauge interest levels and demand from local companies.

“The selection of local tenants through the book building process will provide fairness and transparency—applicants will know exactly what criteria are evaluated in order to be short-listed," said Sheikh Daij bin Salman Al Khalifa, chairman of the board of the General Organisation of Seaports (GOP), organisation that regulates and operates the BLZ.

"We have appointed a selection committee comprising key stakeholders of the zone to thoroughly evaluate all applications and ensure that the selection process is impartial and transparent," he added.

BLZ is aiming to boost Bahrain’s visibility as a logistics hub for the region, focusing on local and international logistics companies interested in expanding in the GCC.

The zone is looking for companies that fulfill criteria that encompass the country’s development objectives as well as those of BLZ and sustainability standards.

“This is what will set us apart from the other zones in the region; we are not searching for just anyone to set up here. We are searching for those certain companies that will add value to Bahrain, that will provide direct or foreign direct investment, that will create jobs, and that support the BLZ’s goal of making Bahrain a viable alternative logistics hub in the Gulf,” said Hamad Fakhro, GOP assistant director general who heads the BLZ.

He said the logistics industry was growing rapidly in response to increasing demand from businesses, and supported by government investment, the number of large infrastructure projects is increasing in the region.

Bahrain is a liberal and progressive business destination with the largest concentration of financial institutions in the Middle East and well known for its investor friendliness.

“The Bahrain Logistics Zone leverages Bahrain’s ease of doing business, its unique location in the northern Gulf, and the new KBS Port to emerge as a regional hub for logistics,” said Robert Ziegler, vice president, AT Kearney, a global strategic management consulting firm.

A boutique logistics park in the state-of-the-art Khalifa Bin Salman Port, regulated by Bahrain GOP, BLZ will have a unique component – an ultra-modern sea port with a capacity of 2.5 million TEUs and world-class customs processes facilitating re-exports throughout Bahrain and the region.

With the causeway linking Bahrain to Saudi Arabia and with another causeway planned to Qatar, the future looks bright for Bahrain, he said.-TradeArabia News Service