Around $85 million is required to complete three industrial cities planned by the Ministry of Industry for Baalbek, Tourbul-Qosaya, and Deir el Moukhaless-Jleiliyeh, according to a United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) study. The Italian Government provided an $8 million loan for the project.
UNIDO has completed the data collection phase needed to execute the techno-economic feasibility studies and design master plans for the three prospective industrial cities.
The planned Baalbek Industrial Zone has a total space of 512,000 square meters (m2) comprising 88 plots. It will require investments of $18 million. The study revealed that the project is expected to create 530 jobs during the construction phase and 3,895 jobs once construction has finished.
The total space required for Tourbul-Qosaya Industrial Zone is 1.8 million m2 comprising 135 plots. It requires around $45 million investment. 845 jobs are expected to be created during construction, and 19,316 jobs after this phase. The site has the potential to include agro-food industries and construction.
Deir el Moukhaless-Jleiliyeh Industrial Zone will be 6.6 million m2 comprising 95 plots. A $21 million investment is required. 550 jobs are expected to be created during construction, and 4,059 thereafter. The site has potential for the establishment of Agro-food and creative industries.
Each industrial zone requires two and a half years to be completed.
The Ministry of Industry said in a statement that the industrial zones will be equipped with the required infrastructure, including roads, water and waste treatment plants, a sewage system, power generation, and piping.
The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran directly showed interest in investing in one of the zones located in Bekaa. The Government of the Republic of China, the Dutch Government and the Polish Government are interested to provide additional technical assistance to the counterparts of the projects.
The Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) will be managing the project.
