Orotina hopes to draw more foreign companies to expand the local job market

Municipal officials in the Alajuela canton of Orotina have asked the U.S-based Georgia Tech Foundation to conduct a feasibility study to determine whether conditions exist for the central Pacific community to begin hosting large foreign companies looking to relocate to Costa Rica.

The Inter-American Development Bank will fund the study.

In a press release, foundation president Emmanuel Hess said officials are looking to generate employment outside the Greater Metropolitan Area. A full report on the study’s findings likely will be published by February 2015.

Municipal officials say Orotina could become an ideal location for the hosting of logistics operations to attract large foreign companies. The canton is located only 21 kilometers from Puerto Caldera, the country’s main Pacific shipping port, and close to Route 27, the main highway connecting San José to the province of Puntarenas. A new international airport in Orotina also is being discussed, with the Civil Aviation Authority currently studying a proposal.

The study will measure Orotina’s logistics capabilities and potential operational costs, taking into account land values and international shipping fees, fuel costs, insurance, permitting, port tariffs and other variables. It also hopes to identify potential companies that might be interested in investing in the area, Hess said.