Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority yesterday awarded Meghna Group of Industries a prequalification licence to set up an economic zone in Comilla.The conglomerate will set up the economic zone on 102 acres, which will be its third. The site, which is very close to the Dhaka-Chittagong highway, will be suitable for setting up LPG bottling plant, power plant, steel mill, chemical plant and pharmaceutical factories.Beza Executive Chairman Paban Chowdhury handed over the licences to Meghna Group’s Chairman Mostafa Kamal at a programme in Dhaka.The economic zones will create about 10,000 jobs in the first year, and the total number of employment would reach one lakh in five years, Kamal said.The conglomerate has already received the final licence from Beza for its Meghna Economic Zone that is situated on 245 acres, and the prequalification licence for its Meghna Industrial Economic Zone, which is being developed on around 100 acres.An economic zone is a designated area in a country with special economic regulations that differ from the rest of the country. An entrepreneur can enjoy various benefits, including tax incentives, from the authorities by setting up an industrial unit in an economic zone.“We are going ahead with a plan of about Tk 8,000 crore [$1 billion] investment in the Meghna Economic Zone and Meghna Industrial Economic Zone,” Kamal said.The construction works of Meghna Pulp and Paper Mills, MPP Power Plant, Sonargaon Flour Mills, Meghna Edible Oil Refinery, Meghna PVC, Meghna Container Port, Tasnim Chemical Complex (unit-2), Sonargaon Seed Crushing Mills and Meghna Sugar Refinery at Meghna Economic Zone are ongoing.The group is also setting up two factories — Meghna Beverage and Unique Cement Fiber Industries — at its Meghna Industrial Economic Zone.“We are expecting to launch at least a couple of factories at the beginning of next year,” said Kamal.Apart from awarding a final licence to Meghna Group, Beza has so far awarded prequalification licences to 10 local private companies to set up 11 other economic zones: one each to AK Khan and Company, Abdul Monem Ltd, Meghna Group, Bay Group, Aman Group, Maisha Group, United Group, Unique Group, Akij Group and two to Bashundhara Group.It is also setting up four economic zones in the public sector. It plans to create jobs for one crore people in the 100 economic zones by 2030 and produce goods and services worth $40 billion.
