Saudi Arabia’s Ajlan and Brothers Holdings has recently inked into a strategic cooperation agreement with CHEC in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, forming a strategic partnership to jointly develop Port City, Colombo and several key pilot developments worth over $ 1.3 billion.
As per a joint announcement released yesterday, the initiatives include the Colombo International Financial Centre (CIFC) Phase 1, Marina Waterfront Commercial and Marina Hotel, Super Luxury Villa and Golf Development within the coming years, kicking start the much-anticipated vertical development and business activities with the Port City Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
Ajlan and Bros Holding Group (Ajlan) is one of the largest comprehensive conglomerate holding group in the Middle East.
Ajlan has established its presence in over 25 countries around the world, with 75 companies in the fields of power, environment, industrial manufacturing, healthcare, tourism, technology, retail, real estate, garments and textiles, mining, water, FMCG, logistics, finance and fintech and entertainment and gaming, etc. Ajlan is a well-known Saudi garment manufacturer and trading company, as well as one of the largest real estate developers in Saudi Arabia.
Port City SEZ is the first-of-its-kind export-oriented SEZ for modern services within the region, catering for ICT, Financial Services, Professional Services, Logistics and Maritime Services, Digital Education, and Tourism and MICE. Up to date, a few regulations regarding company registration have been finalised and other regulations forming the ecosystem of the SEZ are expected to be realised within the next few months.
Coupled with the future-ready infrastructures and internationally competitive policy framework, Port City SEZ is expected to drive the economic and social development of Sri Lanka for the post-crisis era, attracting MNCs and FDIs to unlock the potential of the strategic location and high quality workforce of the island nation as a high-end service hub for Asia Pacific.
