A new industrial enclave, which a bank is creating within a wider industrial park in Bahrain, has been welcomed by the national government as a fine example of private sector participation in economic development.

Kuwait Finance House, Bahrain (KFH-Bahrain) has announced plans to establish a 155,000 sq m state-of-the-art business hub within the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP) in the fast-developing Hidd Industrial Zone.
The project, called KFH Industrial Oasis, is aimed at driving further economic diversification, generating greater inward investment and stimulating job creation, KFH-Bahrain said.
 This will be accomplished by capitalising on the ongoing expansion in the industrial sector and fast-growing demand for industrial real estate projects in the kingdom, it said.
KFH-Bahrain will invest initially around $25 million for developing the infrastructure, although the BIIP, which covers over 250 hectares, already has 25 km of facilities such as roads, street lighting, sewage systems, landscaping and desalination systems.
Target companies for KFH Industrial Oasis include regional businesses, Fortune 500 companies and international firms engaged in manufacturing and service-oriented industries. Under BIIP guidelines, enterprises should be engaged in areas such as services and knowledge-based activities, high-technology manufacturing and assembling, light industries, small and medium enterprises and industrial processing.
KFH-Bharain will provide potential tenants access to financing and capital. Additionally the oasis will offer potential tenants security, logistics and administrative facilities as well as access to sea, air and road transportation. It is well positioned, being less than 10 minutes away in driving time from the airport, the existing seaport of Mina Salman and the new Hidd deepwater port. There is also direct motorway access to Saudi Arabia, the region’s largest market, via the 25-km Bahrain-Saudi Arabia Causeway.
Construction work on the two-phase oasis will begin in early 2006.  In Phase 1, which will take 18 months, there will be 11 factories and a four-storey office tower. Phase 2, to be completed 18 to 24 months later, will have seven factories and a six-storey office tower. Factory sizes will range from 7,500 sq m to 10,000 sq m.
Plans for the oasis were announced after KFH-Bahrain general manager Abdulhakeem Alkhayyat had a meeting with Minister of Commerce and Industry Dr Hassan Abdullah Fakhro.
“We welcome this project put forth by KFH-Bahrain and which is in line with the bank’s ongoing efforts to work closely with the ministry and the Kingdom of Bahrain for developing innovative new projects,” said Dr Fakhro.
Alkhayyat remarked: “As a bank we are committed to participating in projects that help stimulate economic growth locally and across the region, and we believe that KFH Oasis will act as a significant contributor in this regard.”
The official also commented that Bahrain and the Hidd area in particular offered an ideal location for businesses.
Osama Alkhaja, KFH-Bahrain’s head of corporate finance, said the benefits for tenants included “streamlined registration processes, substantial reductions in capital expenditure for the development of infrastructure and construction as well as significant time savings in the establishment and launch of operations.”
KFH-Bahrain is a leading provider of Islamic commercial and investment banking services. It was established in October 2002 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuwait Finance House.