Great Stone Park to Survive Corona
With China running out of cash and popularity it is unsure how much of BRI will survive Covid-19. But some projects seem more certain to continue than others. One of these projects is the poetically named ‘China–Belarus Great Stone Industrial Park’.
In an interview by China’s press agency Xinhua, Alexander Yaroshenko, head of administration of the park, was quoted as saying “Despite the temporary difficulties posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Belarus-China cooperation in all areas will continue” and “The park will continue to develop as a nodal platform for the BRI” [Interview: Industrial park's chief confident about Belarus-China cooperation].
The Great Stone Industrial Park was officially opened in 2014, and in 2015 President Xi Jinping visited the park during his state visit to Belarus, calling it “A pearl of the Silk Road”. The 112 km2 park is a low-tax Special Economic Zone (SEZ), located 45 kilometers east of Minsk. It is close to Minsk National Airport (MSQ) and near the M1 international highway, which connects Belarus with Poland and with Russia. Despite the name, the focus of the park lies on logistics, with the aim of connecting China and Russia to Europe.
China’s attention for Belarus is relatively new. Their original transport-hub country of choice was Ukraine but those plans disappeared with the Russian annexation of Crimea and the conflict in the east of the country.
At the time of the opening, planned investment was $5 billion. Total investment as of January 2020 stood at $520 million. The park claims it is home to 60 companies from 15 countries. The most famous Chinese residents are Huawei, ZTE, and China Merchants Group. Huawei is big in Belarus, working on 5G networks and smart-city projects. It also trains Belarusian students in China. At the park, it has a logistics base and a research centre. ZTE has a smaller presence; it also develops 5G networks and has announced it will build a manufacturing base in the Great Stone Industrial Park.
Finally, China Merchant Group (CMG). The giant logistics and port company is operating low-profile, especially compared to COSCO. But they are an important BRI player, controlling, among many other assets, the infamous Hambantota Port in Sri Lanka. At Great Stone, China Merchant Group operates two logistics warehouses and a customs terminal with a total storage area of 50.000 m2.. The company is furthermore developing a railway connecting the park to a nearby freight terminal.
There are some early signs that investments in Great Stone Industrial Park are indeed continuing. China’s giant machinery maker Sinomach announced they will a build an R&D centre there. And, so important in these disease-full days, production of anti-virus face masks has begun.
Tycho de Feijter
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