Maldives adds oil, mineral exploration to SEZ investment list

President Mohamed Muizzu on Tuesday reviewed the list of economic activities eligible for investment in Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and approved the inclusion of oil and mineral exploration.

Under the Special Economic Zones Act, standards for investment in SEZs must be set once a year. The law requires the identification of eligible economic activities and the determination of minimum investment thresholds for each zone.

These standards must be established by presidential decree in consultation with the Board of Investments and reviewed and reissued before February each year.

On Tuesday, the President issued a resolution setting two minimum investment criteria for SEZ projects. Economic activities must involve an investment of not less than US$100 million, while township development projects must involve an investment of not less than US$500 million.

One amendment was made to the list of activities requiring a minimum investment of US$100 million. The revised list now includes oil, gas and mineral exploration, expanding the previous category which covered only gas exploration.

The approved areas for investment in SEZs include manufacturing activities for export, transshipment ports, logistics services, port and airport operations, bunkering and docking services.

The list also includes universities, tertiary and specialty hospitals, research and development facilities, information and communication technology parks, international financial services, international trade centres, renewable energy projects and food security-related activities.

The resolution states that sustainable township development projects must allocate the minimum investment of US$500 million to components defined under the township development framework.