On behalf of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, the Deputy Prime Minister, attended the signing ceremony of several agreements between member states of the Higher Committee for Industrial Partnership for Sustainable Economic Growth, which the preparation for its fourth meeting is held in Bahrain on January 10-11.
Upon arrival, the Deputy Prime Minister was welcomed by Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, Minister of Industry and Commerce.
Before the signing ceremony, he met with Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology of the United Arab Emirates; Yousef Mahmoud Al Shamali, Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply of Jordan; Ahmed Samir Saleh, Minister of Industry and Trade of Egypt; Riad Mazour, Minister of Industry and Trade of Morocco.
The deputy prime minister hoped that this meeting would achieve its desired goals towards an integrated industrial partnership that contributes to the sustainability of the economies of the member states, according to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and his brothers, Their Majesties, Highnesses, and Excellencies, leaders of the member states.
He affirmed that Bahrain prioritises the principle of integrated industrial partnership between Arab countries to strengthen economic ties, enhance intra-trade and competitiveness, and exchange experiences in information and technology, to achieve the goals of the comprehensive development process under the leadership of HM the King and the follow-up of HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister.
The Deputy Prime Minister noted that these partnerships are significantly and positively contributing to consolidating the ability of member states to permanently adapt to the accelerating global economic changes, such as the challenges imposed by digital and technological transformation, and the shift towards a green and sustainable economy.
He witnessed the announcement of the joining of the addendum of Morocco to the committee, which was signed by the five member states of the Higher Committee.
The Deputy Prime Minister witnessed the signing ceremony of the partnership agreements and the announcement of projects whose combined value is estimated at approximately $2.2 billion, which came within the framework of increasing the domestic product of the four countries, creating job opportunities, achieving supply chain and replacing imports.
The agreements and projects include the following:
· The memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by Abdullah bin Adel Fakhro, Minister of Industry and Commerce, and Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology of the United Arab Emirates, on collaboration in local content programmes.
· The agreement signed by Dilip George, Group CEO of Foulath Holding, and Saeed Al Ghaferi, CEO of Emirates Steel, to supply high-quality iron ore pellets from Bahrain Steel to Emirates Steel for five years at an estimated value of $2 billion. It is considered the largest agreement since the integrated industrial partnership was announced.
· The MoU signed by Khalid Amro Al Rumaihi, Chairman of Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), and Dr. Mohammad Thneibat, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Jordan Phosphate Mines Company (PLC), to provide Alba with 13 thousand tons of aluminum fluoride (ALF3) per year at a cost estimated at $20 million.
· The MoU signed by Khalid Amro Al Rumaihi, Chairman of Alba, and Abdelrahman Obeid, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Jordanian Manaseer Group, to supply Alba with (52 – 66) thousand metric tons of silica at a value ranging from $52 to 66 million.
· The partnership agreement signed by Ralph Debbas, Founder and CEO of W Motors SAL (the strategic partner of Newton Motors Ltd) in the UAE, and Abdelrahman Obeid, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Jordanian Manaseer Group, to build a factory to manufacture electric cars valued at approximately $80 million.
BNA(R)
