Sun | May 24, 2026

FCJ, Barita and NCB Capital Markets sign joint venture for Portland commercial hub

Published:Friday | October 25, 2024 | 7:56 AM
Seated from left: Dr Karrian Hepburn-Malcom, head of wealth at NCB Jamaica; Lyttleton ‘Tanny’ Shirley, chairman of the Factories Corporation of Jamaica; and Ramon Small-Ferguson, CEO of Barita Investments Limited, are joined by other members from their respective organisations at the signing of the joint venture agreement for the Boundbrook Urban Centre on October 24, 2024. -Contributed photo

A joint venture agreement signed Thursday has cleared the way for the construction of a Government-backed $4.2 billion commercial and industrial hub in Portland. 

The equity partners are Barita Investments Limited (41%), the state-owned Factories Corporation of Jamaica (FCJ) (37%), and NCB Capital Markets (22%).

The agreement creates the parent company Boundbrook Urban Centre Limited, which will oversee the construction of the Boundbrook Urban Centre, a 148,000-square-foot centre in Port Antonio. 

It will also house government offices.

Ground was broken for the centre in August. Construction is "anticipated" to be completed by 2026, an FCJ statement said Thursday.

FCJ Chairman, Lyttleton 'Tanny' Shirley, hailed the project as transformative for Portland, saying it “represents a new dawn for Jamaica,” promising meaningful community upliftment.

Barita's CEO, Ramon Small-Ferguson, highlighted the collaboration as a model for public-private synergy, while NCB's Dr Karrian Hepburn-Malcom emphasised the institution's commitment to community-focused development.

The contractor is China Harbour Engineering Company. 

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