The Mariel Special Development Zone is progressing, there is more experience, it is going well, and we will do everything we can to keep it that way, General Raúl Castro Ruz said Saturday morning when visiting this economic enclave: the most important and with it the greatest future in the country.
The Leader of the Cuban Revolution led the government’s monthly inspection of ZEDM business, accompanied by the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, President of the Republic Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermúdez and the Prime Minister, Manuel Marrero Cruz.
As reported by Osvaldo Bravo Borrego, General Manager of the Engineering Services Company of the Comprehensive Directorate of Mariel Projects, in the region – which was established in November 2013 with an area of 465.4 square kilometers – 50 investments have been completed and 21 other investments have been managed.
About 4,173 million pesos have been allocated to basic and supplementary infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, railways, aqueducts, hydraulic, electrical and communication networks, as well as 349 homes for people who had to move because of the need for the investment process and construction workers for the area itself.
The CEO explained each investment in detail, including that of Vidrios Mariel, which should be ready by 2024. He also provided details about the work carried out in ZEDM to generate electricity from sunlight, which allowed the production of 67 peak megawatts. 90% of that electricity is connected to the national electricity grid, where the owners of these systems generate income.
On the subject, the Cuban president insisted that every new investment in Mariel must include generation from renewable energy sources.
Ana Teresa Igarza Martinez, General Manager of ZEDM, when explaining the development and business program, considered the environment to be highly competitive, with more than 500 similar regions in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Among the main attractions of Mariel, he highlighted the single window system, which processes all licenses, permits and licenses to investors; As well as a scheme of financial operations in a freely convertible currency.
It is also considering handing over plots of land with high-level infrastructure financed by the Cuban state, such as electricity, water, communications, roads, and fire-fighting systems. In addition, incentives are offered to generate solar energy from the rooftops of industrial facilities.
So far, he said, 62 companies — 36 in operation — have been approved for a committed investment of more than $3 billion. Of these, more than a billion have already been executed. The region has 21 countries and 11 multinational corporations; More than 15,000 job opportunities were created.
Igarza Martinez noted that ZEDM’s core industries are logistics, biotechnology, biopharmaceutical manufacturing, and advanced manufacturing.
Along the path of high technology, on November 1, 2021, the CIGB-Mariel Biotechnological Industrial Complex, the most recent in Cuba, was inaugurated. Eduardo Martinez Diaz, President of the Business Group BIOCUBAFARMA, explained to the country’s leadership what happened in these eight months. He pointed out that the factory is in operation and the equipment is being calibrated and rehabilitated. The scientist confirmed that all standards so far are optimal.