Ideal base for export-oriented manufacturing

Curaçao is gradually diversifying its economy beyond the traditional focus on financial services, oil refining, shipping, and tourism. While the agricultural and fishing sectors are limited, the manufacturing sector is gradually expanding, and as more real-estate projects are developed, the construction and construction-materials sectors are growing as well.

Investors in industrial and trade activities in Curaçao can rely on well-developed essential services, including abundant water and electricity, and excellent telecommunications infrastructure.

For trade-oriented companies, Curaçao is an ideal base thanks to its well-developed transport infrastructure. Curaçao has developed a role as a leading transshipment hub through leveraging its exceptional port facilities, modern airport, fully serviced business parks, multilingual population, strategic location linking North and South America and the Caribbean, and preferred access to the European Union.

Trading companies can manage their marketing and distribution via Curaçao’s special economic zones, including at the airport and harbor, where goods for export can be manufactured, processed, assembled, packed, exhibited, stored, and released from bond, all absolutely free from customs duties. In addition, a variety of services, including Internet services, are available there as well.

Companies exporting from Curaçao also benefit from the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI), which allows for products manufactured in Curaçao to be imported duty-free into the United States if 35 percent of value is added in Curaçao (excluding 15 percent for American components) and if the final product is a new product formed from the foreign material used in its manufacture. Products eligible under the CBI include electronic and electro-mechanical assembly, wood products, fresh and frozen seafood, and medical and surgical supplies.

Curaglas

“Curaglas provides the missing link to penetrate the Latin American market”

Curaglas, whose staff and management have more than a decade of experience in the recycling industry, has developed exceptional expertise in the fast-growing field of environmental technologies and recycling.

This innovative organization offers a full range of services related to recycling and environmental technologies, including consulting and distribution as well as glass-recycling equipment and machinery. Ludwin Fernandes, Managing Director, says, “Curaglas can provide governmental and nongovernmental investors with the research, business plan, equipment and after-sales service necessary for their local market.”

Mr. Fernandes and Mrs. Endirah Biesbrouck, Project Consultant, have a strong track record and have provided consulting support in many countries, from Latin America to Australia. “We show the world that it is possible to operate a plant with zero waste that can help countries turn waste into valuable and marketable products,” Fernandes explains. Curaglas is helping to solve a growing problem in Latin America: a build-up of waste products. “Countries in this region need a company that has a workable business plan to create innovative, efficient recycling plants quickly,” Fernandes points out. “There is a lot of technical information and market analysis that needs to be researched before an investor can purchase a machine. Curaglas provides this missing link that potential investors require to make sound investment decisions.” explains Biesbrouck.

Curaglas’s policy is to build long-term relationships with its clients and to provide personalized attention. The company welcomes visits from potential clients and investors so that it can demonstrate its new glass-recycling machinery. Curaglas provides this client approach through its distributor’s agreement with Andela Products Limited. Andela has created the first patented pulverizer machine for the glass-recycling industry, the Andela Glass Pulverizer, and subsequently developed a wide range of equipment and systems for recycling glass and other materials. This strong relationship with Andela allows Curaglas to sell Andela’s machinery as well as receive clients from Andela for further consultancy services to those interested in the Latin American market. “We work together with Andela to fill the gap in the recycling marketplace,” states Biesbrouck.

In addition to the potential Curaglas offers to investors, the company can serve as an ideal partner for American enterprises aiming to enter or expand in Latin America. Fernandes concludes, “Companies can use us to penetrate the Latin American market, in which Curaglas can act as the local partner. Our specialized expertise and customized approach to each and every client allows us to surpass our client’s expectations and together achieve profitable success as this is the pivotal time for the future of the recycling industry.”

Our location in Curaçao is advantageous and our multilingual background, being fluent in English, Spanish, and Dutch allows us to be flexible enough to consult to several cultures. Curaglas is currently building its own state-of-the-art glass recycling center in Mal Pais, Curaçao, that will be operational in second-quarter 2009. The new plant will be equipped with the latest technologies, including automated facilities, and will use innovative ‘open loop’ methods to create recycled glass with a number of potential uses. Building on their cutting-edge capabilities, Curaglas offers world-class turn-key consulting support for countries wishing to set up a similar plant.

Curinde

“Curaçao has excellent infrastructure for international trade.”

The Curaçao Industrial and International Trade Development Company (CURINDE) has been playing a key role in bringing investment to Curaçao since 1980. The organization is 85 percent government-owned but is financially independent and has been achieving steady growth.

Eric R. Smeulders, Managing Director, explains that CURINDE was formed to attract local and foreign investors to enterprises involved in international trade and distribution.

CURINDE is the ideal local contact for foreign investors in Curaçao. The company manages three business parks, including free zones at the port, and international airport, which are now the home of more than 200 companies. “Companies can establish in these areas, export their goods, and count on imports free of customs duties. The free zones alone are achieving turnover of USD 300 million. We also operate an industrial park that caters to the local market and to companies focusing on exports,” Smeulders explains. CURINDE organizes workshops, seminars, and exhibitions to promote investment in Curaçao.

Companies in CURINDE’s business parks are involved in a wide range of sectors, including garments, pharmaceuticals, and heavy equipment. As Smeulders points out, international trade plays a key role in Curaçao’s economy.

For its business parks, CURINDE targets international companies looking for an attractive base for trade to South America, the Caribbean and beyond. CURINDE can offer building land or existing facilities. The fact that Curaçao’s currency, the guilder, is pegged to the USD is an added attraction for American investors. “Curaçao also has excellent infrastructure and efficient air and sea connections for international trade,” Smeulders says.

Curaçao differentiates itself as a free-zone trade base from its closest competitor, Panama, through its security, world-class legal system, flexibility, and strong ties to the European Union. “Curaçao is also culturally diverse and multilingual,” Smeulders explains. He welcomes international investors to make CURINDE their partner in Curaçao.

Interpress

“We want our clients to impress their clients with our impressions.”

Chris Quast, a native of The Netherlands Antilles who has studied and worked in the United Kingdom and in The Netherlands, has turned his love for fine printing into a thriving business that serves some of the leading companies in the islands.

Interpress, which moved into modern new headquarters just over a year ago, has “a European mindset and local feeling,” as Quast puts it.

Interpress offers a full range of printing services, from business cards to full color work. The company is hoping to be ISO 12647-2 certified for its offset printing at the end of this year, and is well known locally for its very high quality work and for its well-trained staff. “We serve both leading local companies and renowned international firms. We want our clients to impress their clients with our impressions.” Quast says. He adds that Interpress’ competitive edge is its commitment to quality.

Having carved out a position as a leading printing enterprise in Curaçao, Quast would now like to expand the company throughout the Caribbean. He adds that “We would like to work with a partner from the United States or Europe to help us expand the business.”

Janssen de Jong

“We deliver on our promises.”

Janssen de Jong Group, a Dutch company with its Caribbean division based in the Dutch Antilles, is a regional construction-sector leader that has been helping to upgrade infrastructure in the Caribbean since 1953.

It has gradually expanded its activities to include mining, concrete production, and maritime and civil construction as well as infrastructure. Janssen de Jong built Curaçao’s airport, in which it recently acquired a 49 percent stake in anticipation of strong growth in Curaçao’s tourism sector.

“Curaçao has a stable political environment, an attractive quality-to-price ratio, a location outside the hurricane belt, and great potential not only for tourism but also as a transshipment hub between North and South America,” says Pieter Van Gulik, CEO and Area Director.

Janssen de Jong Caribbean has earned a solid reputation in all its markets for completing projects on time and always adding value. “We are a very reliable company that delivers on its promises,” Van Gulik explains.

The company is also a strong supporter of Curaçao. It has made major investments in the island, employing funds from the Netherlands that it invests in projects to support Curaçao’s future development. “This strategy is good for all parties. As Curaçao gets more prosperous, it will need more roads and houses, and building those is what we do,” Van Gulik points out.

Janssen de Jong Caribbean also supports a number of community-service projects on the island through a foundation it established a decade ago to benefit local schools and disadvantaged communities. “We believe in the future of Curaçao,” Van Gulik concludes.

Selikor

“Companies can leave their waste management to Selikor.”

Selikor is Curaçao’s waste-management specialist, with an emphasis on the management side of its business. The largest enterprise of its kind in Curaçao, Selikor uses an integrated approach to managing waste to ensure a clean and healthful environment for the island. It employs the highest international standards and is ISO certified both for its quality management and for its environmental-protection measures. Selikor can handle any company’s waste-management needs in Curaçao and aims to expand regionally.

Wesley Kook, Managing Director, explains, “In an innovative way, with modern equipment and proactive human-resource management, we maintain our leading position in the Curaçao waste-management market. There has been a big shift on how to deal with waste in recent years. People once merely dumped waste and waste buildup deterred investors and visitors; now the people of Curaçao are focusing more on how to manage waste, and for the past 15 years Selikor has been continuously upgradingits services.”

Focus on recycling

Over the past five years, Selikor has been focusing on recycling waste with the support of a program funded by the Netherlands, and has launched a new company, Caribbean Recycling. Selikor has also upgraded its infrastructure to boost efficiency. A current goal is to create a waste-incineration plant from which energy will be recovered.

Handling waste produced by cruise ships is one of Selikor’s key services for Curaçao. “Cruise ships know that when they come to our harbor, they can make use of our waste-management facilities. Other islands cannot offer this service. They focus on sand and sun, while we can offer the added attraction of proper services,” Kook says.

Selikor welcomes the chance to partner with companies operating in Curaçao. Kook explains, “Foreign companies should know that if they come to Curaçao, they can leave their waste management to Selikor.”