Lafarge plans for ‘urban hub’ in Fuheis still on hold — CEO

AMMAN — Lafarge Jordan said on Saturday that its plan to turn its cement production plant in Fuheis into an “environment-friendly urban” hub is still awaiting approvals.

“Our objective [through] the whole project is to find a solution that is satisfactory to all stakeholders including the local community…The Fuheis factory has not been operational since 2013 and it is time for a sustainable solution,” the company’s CEO, Amr Reda, said at a press conference.

The company signed a memorandum of understanding with the Fuheis Municipality, but is still awaiting the municipal council’s approval to go ahead with the plan to turn its site of 1,880 dunums into an urban hub, Reda added.

“We are sacrificing our presence in the middle of a market to find a sustainable solution, and if there is no approval, we hope to have the opportunity to reoperate the factory via renewable energy solutions,” he said.

“We have also to take into consideration the interests of the shareholders and the employees,” Reda said.

The company’s production site has been non-operational for several years due to pressure from the local community over its environmental impact. 

He said the company paid JD5 million to the local community due to the environmental impact of the plant, and cases are still being filed against the company in Fuheis, 20km northwest of Amman.

“Although the factory is not operational, we are still getting lawsuits, and we pay JD5 million annually in environmental compensations. The company is suffering because of that…There are no emissions from the factory and we are now getting lawsuits not only from Fuheis but also from Mahis,” Reda added.

The plan to develop the site is a win for all, he argued.

“As a company that owns the land, we have the choice to decide what to do with the land alone, but we wanted to be part of the local community and keep the local community engaged with us,” he said.

“We took the considerations and concerns of all stakeholders [into account] while developing the blueprint for the project,” he added.

“We are still waiting and hoping for a solution that [satisfies] all.”

The plan entails creating a clean energy city that would include shopping malls, residential and commercial properties, medical facilities and restaurants, as well as a university and some villas.

In a previous interview with The Jordan Times, Reda said the cost of the project would exceed JD2 billion when it is ready.

Although the municipality has approved the proposed project, civil society organisations and prominent committees in Fuheis have rejected the plan.

Fuheis residents have held sit-ins to protest the project.

Some of the protesters have called for rehabilitating the land first and assessing the environmental impact of any potential project, citing damage caused by the cement factory, which operated in the area for 65 years, while others say pieces of the land should be distributed to the people of Fuheis instead.