Besix Group, Belgium’s largest construction company, has said that private-public partnerships (PPP) are key to affordable infrastructure development in the Middle East.
The contractor, which is behind a number of high-profile UAE projects, is celebrating 40 years of work in Sharjah, having implemented its first project in the emirate – the Sharjah National Cement Factory – in 1975. Since then it has completed more than 30 projects there through its subsidiary, Six Construct.
Besix said that it is now looking to diversify its business in Sharjah beyond design and build. The company is increasingly focused on owning and operating infrastructure assets through PPP with governments in Europe and the Middle East.
Sharjah too has been at the forefront of private-public partnerships with the development of the UAE’s leading waste-management company, Bee’ah.
“Infrastructure demands across the world are changing rapidly, and we at Besix are at the forefront of this evolution in our industry,” said Pierre Sironval, Managing Director of Six Construct in the Gulf Region.
“We are moving Six Construct beyond designing and building world-class facilities to operating, managing and even owning assets through Besix, in partnership with and for the benefit of governments seeking to give their people efficient, cost-effective infrastructure services to support economic and social development,” he added.
To celebrate its 40 years in Sharjah, Besix held a celebration under the patronage of Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah and member of the Supreme Council.
The event, ‘Sharjah: 40 Years of Achievements’, was held at the Jawaher Convention Centre and attended by Sheikh Khaled bin Abdullah bin Sultan Al Qasimi, chairman of Hamriyah Free Zone Authority.
“Through our subsidiary, Six Construct, it has been our privilege to partner with Sharjah in this wonderful journey of development since our first project here in 1975. We are looking forward to expanding our partnership in the years to come, and hope to evolve our relationship with Sharjah to become an investor in and operator of different types of infrastructure facilities,” said Besix senior vice president, Ghassan Ejjeh.