The Gebeng Industrial Area was clustered as a Chemical/Petrochemical Hub on 23 April 1997. It witnessed the opening of the first Petrochemical-based factory which was the MTBE/Polypropylene plant, in which PETRONAS played a role in attracting new Petrochemical-based investors to the Gebeng Industrial Area.

With a total area of 7,375 acres, the Gebeng Industrial Area was developed through four (4) phases; Phase I (700 acres), Phase II (1,400 acres), Phase III (4,000 acres) and Phase IV (1,275 acres).

Its strategic location equipped with good infrastructure makes it a major attraction for foreign and local investors to invest in the production and manufacturing field. In addition, the existing systematic traffic flow is an advantage for investors to travel from the Gebeng Industrial Area to Kuantan Port, at a distance of only 7.5 km and also connects Kuala Lumpur - Kuantan via the East Coast Highway with an estimated travel time of only 3 hours. By 2026, the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) which connects the west and east coast of Peninsular Malaysia will begin operations and further minimize travel time.

Among the multinational companies currently engaged in investment activities in the Gebeng Industrial Area are RP Chemicals (M) Sdn. Bhd., BASF Petronas Chemicals Sdn. Bhd., Kaneka (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Eastman Chemicals (M) Sdn Bhd, MTBE (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd and many more.

Currently, the rapid growth in the Gebeng Industrial Area is supported by the Malaysia-China-Kuantan Industrial Park (MCKIP) Mega Project with a target investment of RM8.0-RM10.0 billion. The project has grown into an important economic drive in the state with the existence of three MCKIP phases, namely MCKIP Phase 1 (1,133 acres), MCKIP Phase 2 (1,000 acres) and MCKIP Phase 3 with 600 acres.

For MCKIP Phase 1, the anchor player, Alliance Steel Sdn. Bhd., has carried out a full production operation in the first quarter of 2019 at a capacity of 3.5 million metric tons a year.

To date, the project has offered employment to 5,780 people of which 3,532 are locals while 2,248 are foreign workers and the majority of these foreign workers will be repatriated once construction work is completed.