By Dan McCue

ORANGEBURG -- Jafza International, a subsidiary of Dubai World, a holding company wholly owned by the Dubai government, has put Orangeburg on its short list of potential sites in the Southeast for a $600 million to $700 million logistics, manufacturing and distribution center.

If the plan comes to fruition, Jafza International could literally transform the largely rural community into a substantial trade-based economy through the creation of 8,000 to 10,000 jobs over the next decade, said individuals privy to the discussions.

A delegation from Jafza International met with South Carolina officials and business leaders on Sept. 5 as part of their ongoing due diligence and site review process and said they expect to make a decision on the Orangeburg site within the next 30 days.

An undisclosed number of sites in other parts of the Southeast are also still in the running, members of the delegation said. “This process is entirely about who wants our global expertise and investment,” delegation members said during a day-long series of discussions.

They also told state and business officials that $600 million to $700 million is only a “general calculation” of the minimum investment that would be required “for building our vision somewhere in the region.”

Based on their previous experience, delegation members said, additional investment from companies locating on the site could be as much as another $1.2 billion.

Jafza officials said Orangeburg has everything they’re looking for, but there are still logistical issues that need to be resolved— namely the creation of a cloverleaf at the S.C. Highway 301 and Interstate 95 interchange in Orangeburg County, and the purchase of the land where the center would be developed.

The company is eyeing the same 800-acre parcel where CaroLinks, the Charleston-based start-up, has long maintained it would build a logistics park. In connection with that project, U.S. House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn has secured $4 million over the past two years to provide initial funding for the creation of the cloverleaf interchange.

S.C. Department of Transportation officials said the cloverleaf project is still in the early planning stages, but that the eventual cost would likely be in the $40 million to $60 million range.

The site, a former sod farm, is roughly 800 acres in total and is comprised of several smaller parcels. CaroLinks still holds the options to purchase some of those parcels; many of its other options on the site have expired.

Jim Roquemore, president of Orangeburg-based Super Sod Inc. and co-owner of the site, along with Ben Copeland, CEO of Patton Seed Co., declined to comment on the status of the property, citing “sensitive and confidential negotiations” currently under way.

Gregg Robinson, executive director of the Orangeburg County Development Commission, also declined comment on potential development of the site.

Formed in 2000, Jafza International has created free trade and special economic zones in its home country of Dubai as well as in Morocco, the Republic of Djibouti and Malaysia. The company is loath to describe its work as creating “inland ports,” instead describing it as creating “megahubs” of logistics and distribution.

So successful have these enterprise zones been that developing countries are lining up to work with the company. The Jafza delegation told local officials that they are currently assessing more than 30 similar projects around the world.

This week, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice president of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai, announced that Jafza International and two of Dubai World’s other subsidiaries had entered into an agreement with Vietnam in regard to developing a global logistics hub there.

Al Maktoum and Dubai World Chairman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem are currently in Vietnam to discuss bilateral relations between the UAE and Vietnam.