14 projects worth $213M approved in Sihanoukville
14 projects worth $213M approved in Sihanoukville
Another 14 projects worth $213 million received approval in Cambodia’s coastal city Sihanoukville recently which included 10 projects for reviving the construction of stalled buildings under the ‘Special Investment Promotion Program’ for the city, launched by Prime Minister Hun Manet earlier in January.
Long Dimanche, Deputy Governor of Preah Sihanouk Province told Khmer Times yesterday that 14 projects were verbally approved for incentives under the Special Program to Promote Investment in Preah Sihanouk Province 2024 during a meeting on April 29 at the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF).
“The types of incentive and other conditions have not been set due to the nature of each project. Hence, the working group is to issue formal approval in the following weeks,” the Deputy Governor said.
The decision on the new projects was made during a meeting chaired by Hean Sahib, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and Chairman of the Investment Promotion Working Group.
Dimanche said that the Working Group approved 14 out of 17 projects. The other three are to be rechecked and reevaluated.
The approved projects include five-star hotels, casinos, resort complexes, condominiums, multifunctional buildings for office and accommodation, a concrete mixing plant, a cardboard manufacturing facility and a project for interior decoration.
So far, 27 investment projects have received special incentives from the government in the coastal city since the launch of the programme by the Prime Minister on January 31.
These projects are a mix of Cambodian and foreign ownership across small, medium, and large-scale investments. It is learnt that the Investment Promotion Working Group will soon review the special incentive proposals for 12 more projects.
The move to solve the crisis created by the unfinished buildings, left mostly by Chinese investors, gathered momentum last year following criticism that they were an eyesore in the coastal city known for its tourism potential.
Since its inception, the Investment Promotion Working Group has been actively implementing measures to attract investment to the province. Its efforts include the creation of designated development zones, the drafting of a sub-decree for granting residence visas for long-term investments and the promotion of existing industrial and special economic zones.
Incentives under the Special Investment Promotion Program include exemption from income tax and minimum tax for an additional three years, exemption from value added tax till the completion and improvement of stagnant buildings, five-year withholding tax exemption on real estate lease, exemption of property tax and the exemption of various administrative sanctions.
The government had identified 362 unfinished buildings in Sihanoukville as of January 2024. According to Aun Pornmoniroth, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy and Finance Minister, in January, the construction of these buildings was estimated to cost $1.61 billion.
It may be noted that since 2016, investment in Sihanoukville has grown rapidly, especially with the growth of a large number of hotels, restaurants, shops, and other facilities, mostly due to Chinese investments.
However, in the period from 2019 onwards, changes in the socio-economic situation combined with the spread of Covid-19 and other global challenges have caused the construction of many buildings to be suspended or stopped.
Meanwhile, the work on a master plan to develop Preah Sihanouk province into a multi-purpose model Special Economic Zone is also nearing completion. The master plan is developed with the support of China’s Urban Planning and Design Institute of Shenzhen (UPDIS).
With the implementation of the master plan, the city’s population is expected to go up to one million from the current 300,000 as the multi-purpose SEZ aims to become a major economic zone in Southeast Asia that is empowered by smart technology, as well as an advanced industrial zone serving regional and global production chains.
