It is with a degree of embarrassment that I admit I somehow managed to get lost in Bahrain. Bahrain is by no means a big country. In fact, at about 750 square kilometres, not only is it one of the smallest island nations in the world, but it also appears humorously small when you contrast it with its closest neighbour, the giant Saudi Arabia, where the land area of a single airport built 20 years ago is bigger than the entire country of Bahrain.
As you may imagine, there aren't many places to go to here and even fewer places to get lost in. Hence you might understand my dismay to find that, despite being a native of this island, I managed to misplace myself without even trying. A fleeting moment of daydreaming while driving is all it took to throw me off course. I took a right instead of a left, and suddenly I was at the mercy of monster freight lorries and armoured bulldozers.
I've always had a secret fascination with industrial zones. There is a certain charm in the imposing stature of the largest structures created by mankind and the rhythmic flow of monolithic heavy industry. Factories, refineries and ports, with their steel structure, bright lights and thick towering chimneys are a testament to how far we have come, innovated and created. Logistics, assembly lines and workforce: I thought of these intriguing relevant terms as I drove through this industrial zone which is neatly tucked in the somewhat secluded but conveniently reachable Hidd area located south of Bahrain's second largest city, Muharraq.
Just a week into this year, Bahrain's Economic Development Board announced the inauguration of the new Salman Industrial City. This new zone had already attracted US$3.5 billion (Dh12.85bn) in investment, and is estimated to reach $8bn once its various projects are completed. For a country the size of Bahrain, these projects are impressive due to their relative magnitude. The Bahrain International Investment Park offers 240 hectares for manufacturing and international services. The Bahrain Investment Wharf consists of 170ha of warehousing and logistics projects, and even includes residential zones for employees. The Hidd Industrial Area compromises 650ha with various industrial investments (such as the Hidd Power Company, which supplies 75 per cent of Bahrain's clean water requirements, and a newly planned integrated steel complex).
As I continued down the road to these projects, it was easy to see how the vision of Salman Industrial City will become a reality. The potential for new development is tremendous. It seems to me that going back to traditional industries is a fitting end to a decade that started with the dot-com bubble, which by 2001 was deflating at full speed. Those who were burnt by the bust of the technology and internet sectors sought more traditional forms of investment, and so the housing bubble formed in the US. By 2005, housing prices had peaked. As of today, they may not yet have hit bottom.
And so we came to the subprime mortgage crisis, which crippled the financial markets and exposed pervasive weaknesses in financial industry regulation and the global financial system. Perhaps, then, now is the right time to go back to basics and build the right foundations for the next great economic cycle. After all, the basis of the contemporary civilisation in which we live today can be directly traced back to the industrial revolution in the UK. The profound socioeconomic and cultural effects subsequently spread throughout the rest of the world, and so began an era of unprecedented capital growth.
This is not to suggest that Bahrain by itself is to usher in a new era of global economic development, but these little steps carried out by a small Gulf country are exactly what is needed to revitalise the region and incrementally rebuild the economy. These plans and achievements in Bahrain are more interesting when considered in combination with several other key facts. One month before launching the Salman Industrial City, the king of Bahrain officially opened the Khalifa bin Salman Port, which is adjacent to the industrial zone and five minutes away from the international airport. While the port has been operational since April last year, the announcement's timeliness is not a coincidence.
There is a bigger plan here, and this co-ordinated launch of industrial projects comes after years of corresponding smaller steps. Yet greater proposals are in the pipeline, ranging from the expansion of both the main aluminium and petrochemical companies, Aluminium Bahrain and Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company, to building a causeway to Qatar and plans for a new port and international airport.
Bahrain has over the past few years marketed itself as a financial hub, flirted with massive developments and pushed for tourism and commerce, all to varying but not notable levels of success. But I believe this opportune local industrial revolution could be more successful than all past efforts combined. I pondered these thoughts, and more, as I dodged a cement mixer and made for the nearest U-turn. In my mind, I imagined a day when the car I drive would be manufactured locally in a Bahraini factory at Salman Industrial City.
A Bahraini car, perhaps even with a built-in navigation system, so I never lose my way again. @Email:business@thenational.ae