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Field of Dreams
By Dan McCue
Staff Writer
With the Jebel Ali Free Zone in the emirate of Dubai, the principals involved in Jafza International created an epic logistics and distribution center on 35,000 barren desert acres.
That center of trade and commerce has since spun off nearly a dozen mini-cities on the vast empty land around it, cities dedicated to specific industries ranging from aeronautics to high
tech, from textiles to maritime.
Now, Jafza International hopes to do something just as transformative to 1,300 acres in Orangeburg County, said Chuck Heath, the company’s managing director.
“My philosophy isn’t to try to entice a Wal-Mart distribution center to move from its current location to my park. That does nothing for the regional economy,” said Heath about Jafza International’s planned $600 million investment in South Carolina.
“What we want to do is facilitate the increase of foreign investments and opportunities in the state, and Orangeburg specifically,” he said. “Developing and creating a new economy, that’s what we are about.”
Heath, who broke his silence about the company’s activities in late September in order “to provide context” about its intentions, said about 6,500 international companies are currently operating in the Jebel Ali Free Zone in Dubai.
“My job, as we see it here in South Carolina, is to bring new direct foreign investment to this region,” Heath said. “We will make sure all 6,500 of the companies that have embraced Jebel Ali are aware that Jafza is applying the same vision and the same principles here in Orangeburg.”
Jafza International recently closed on the 1,300 acres it’s seeking to bring its plans to fruition.
“I am pleased Jafza International has the confidence in Orangeburg County to invest $600 million in the largest economic development project in the county’s history,” said U.S. Rep. James E. Clyburn, D-S.C., who represents the sixth Congressional District, which encompasses Orangeburg. “This is welcome news on the heels of last week’s report that Orangeburg County ranks 10th in the nation for the poorest counties with populations over 65,000.”
Jafza International’s decision to embrace Orangeburg came after seven months of analysis of several sites in the Southeast, Heath said.
“I didn’t just wake up in the middle of the night and say, ‘Let’s go to Orangeburg,’” he said. “We had people on the ground, unbeknownst to anybody, canvassing the Southeast as a whole, and individual states specifically, looking at everything from demographic trends to the available work force to how business friendly a state was to the number of multinational companies who were relocating or making new investments in the area.
“In the end, we came to equate South Carolina and Orangeburg with the conditions we had in Dubai when Jebel Ali was under development—the state has reliable power, sufficient labor and quality infrastructure. In fact, you’re already pretty close to the model we developed in Dubai.”
Firm on jobs
When questioned about the 8,000 to 10,000 jobs that the company had previously suggested would be created in Orangeburg, Heath stood firm on those assertions.
“I’ve done my numbers, and these are the numbers we anticipate being created in Orangeburg and the surrounding area,” he said, explaining that the figures include estimates for direct employment at the site, indirect employment inspired by Jafza International’s activities in Orangeburg and employment by others that is created by the logistics center’s presence.
Heath uses a multiplier of 4.29 direct jobs created per acre, a formula based on what’s occurred at Jebel Ali in Dubai, he said.
Orangeburg a-booming
Jafza International isn’t the only entity developing a commercial park in Orangeburg.
According to Robinson, of the county’s economic development commission, several other smaller parks are in the works and Orangeburg and Dorchester counties are about to hire an engineer to determine where they can build their own joint county park.
The existing parks include Orangeburg County Industrial Park, Orangeburg County City Industrial Park, John W. Matthews Industrial Park, Shamrock and the Carolina Regional Business Park.
“The more the merrier,” Heath said. “I think there’s a good level of credibility that goes along with all that development, and I think it creates a greater awareness factor that creates additional opportunities.
“At the same time, I think all that competition is very healthy for us as a business. After all, it’s human nature to get lackadaisical after awhile, to get a little lazy. We’re strong believers in competition because it forces you to be on your toes.”
Jafza International purchased more than 800 acres jointly held by Jim Roquemore, president of Orangeburg-based SuperSod, and Ben Copeland, CEO of the Patton Seed Co.
Another longtime property owner in the area, Motley Rice attorney Miles Loadholt, said he had been in talks with representatives of Jafza International for about three to four months before he and business partner Robert O. Collins sold 196.53 acres they owned to CaroLinks, a startup logistics firm based in Charleston.
CaroLinks held the options to the property, which it had hoped to develop into its own logistics facility. However, in the end CaroLinks purchased the land because its options on it were about to expire. It has since sold the land to Jafza International.
Legislative help
Bobby Harrell, speaker of the S.C. House of Representatives, described Jafza International’s plans for Orangeburg as not only exciting but also as something the Legislature would like to help bring to fruition.
“If they need legislation to help them do what they want to do, I would hope that they contact us,” Harrell said. “I haven’t been in the loop on this, but I would hope the (S.C. Department of Commerce) is actively engaged in conversation with them. We would certainly be amenable to helping them.
Kara Borie, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Commerce, declined comment, referring requests for comment to Jafza International.
Heath said he expects Jafza International’s activities in Orangeburg to not only help draw new industries and investment to South Carolina but also to touch off a boom in housing and commercial construction in the upper Lowcountry and the center of the state.
“If you’re bringing in all these people to work and providing jobs for people who have historically been underemployed, certainly other businesses and activities will develop,” he said.
“But at the same time, we intend to work with local and state officials to ensure that any growth that occurs is controlled and sustainable. Any other alternative would only tax the infrastructure and the people living there and potentially diminish the quality of life there.
“We don’t want that. Our credo is to be a good neighbor and we really do try to live by that.”
Ports to benefit
Recently, Heath met with commercial delegations from South Korea and India who want to increase their profile at Jebel Ali.
Given the large volume of trade from India that comes through the Port of Charleston, Heath said his conversations could soon provide direct benefits to the port and the region.
“Our future success is based on our major trading partners. A tremendous amount of Indian imports come through East Coast ports, with fully 60 percent of those goods coming through the ports of Charleston and Savannah,” Heath said.
“The problem India has, its biggest risk, is that it has no real infrastructure. We’re currently in the process of helping to rectify that by acquiring land to build six logistics zones and two industrial zones in India, and we intend to work very closely with Charleston and other ports in the Southeast to ensure they benefit from our network of connections.
“After all, we’ve already built a reputation with these folks,” Heath said. “We have a credibility factor with them. And we’re committed to increasing Indian trade with the Southeast region. We’re very passionate about that.”
Dan McCue is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dmccue@setcommedia.com.
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