Saudi Arabia to invest US$ 650 billion in infrastructure up to 2015

There are lots of ways to read this story. The implications of this level of Saudi investment in one of the US' major South American trading partners is not to be ignored or taken lightly. Just as a strong economic bond between Iran and Russia gives the mullahs enough cover to protect itself from most US aggression, the Saudi's appear to be hedging their bets as well as covering their own behinds by building a similar relationship with Brazil. As per usual, money talks. The US is so long is it is the engine that drives the world economy. However, that will all changed when that same energy is found elsewhere and in various places around the globe. Here's the story in full:

São Paulo - Saudi Arabia plans on investing US$ 650 billion in infrastructure projects, such as the construction of highways, airports and ports, between the years of 2006 and 2015. The information was disclosed yesterday (23) by the secretary general of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Riyadh, Hussein Al Athel, to the Brazilian delegation that is in the capital city of the Arab country. Athel spoke of the interest Saudi Arabia has that Brazil participates in this process.

According to the secretary general of Chamber of Riyadh, Brazil is currently a priority trade partner for Saudi Arabia, next to China, India and South Africa. "Companies from China and India already are in Saudi Arabia. The opportunities for Brazilian companies are also great," said the secretary general of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Michel Alaby, who participated in the meeting, headed by the Brazilian ambassador in Riyadh, Luís Sérgio Gama Figueira.

Yesterday the two Brazilian construction companies that are participating in the delegation, Odebrecht and Andrade Gutierrez, had meetings with seven great players in the Saudi Arabian construction sector. Alaby is also bringing the contacts of these companies to Brazil to forward it to other companies in the sector. There are currently two great projects for the construction of ports with open biddings in the Arab country, one in Jeddah and another in Dhahran.

The companies that are part of the Brazilian delegation, good part in the building materials sector, are meeting with potential Saudi trade partners, which should yield future sales and partnerships. Amongst the participants in the mission are companies such as Docol, of metal fixtures, Braskem, of chemical products, trading company Comexport, Granimex, in the marble and granite sector and Petrobras, the Brazilian state-owned oil company, as well as the Espírito Santo Ornamental Stone Union (Sindirochas-ES).

More trade

Trade between Brazil and Saudi Arabia has been increasing. During the first ten months this year, global trade between the two countries reached US$ 2 billion, the same value for the whole of last year. The Saudis, however, are willing to exchange even more.

In a meeting between representatives of the Bank of Brazil and the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), yesterday, the Saudi British Bank and the Samba Financial Group showed their willingness in giving lines of credit for trade between Brazil and Saudi Arabia. The two Brazilian banks are members of the mission, whose activities end today.

New actions

Representatives of the Saudi Ministry of Trade and Industry have also showed, during a meeting that took place yesterday with the Brazilians, themselves willing to increase relations with the country. The group was hosted by the director of the Department of Foreign Trade of the Ministry, Ahmed Bedaiwi, and by the executive director of the Foreign Trade Agency, Fahd Al Shammary. They suggested that an exhibit of Brazilian products should be held at the beginning of next year in Riyadh or Jeddah.

The secretary general of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce also suggested to the Saudis, during the meeting, the creation of a mixed governmental committee and a business council between the two countries to discuss trade approximation and joint investments. The representatives of the ministry also invited the Brazilian companies to participate in fairs in the construction and foodstuff fields in Saudi Arabia.

Visas

According to Alaby, at the meeting with the secretary general of the Chamber of Commerce of Riyadh, the delegation also asked Saudi Arabia to improve the entry of Brazilian businessmen in the country through simplifying the process for obtaining visas. The Saudis will start giving visas at the airport for entrepreneurs of the member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and, according to Alaby, the Brazilians wish for a similar treatment. "We will establish contacts between the two Chambers (Arab Brazilian and of Riyadh) for looking into the topic and searching for a solution", he states.

Vaccines

The representative of the Ministry of Health of Brazil in the mission, Fabio Webbert Tagliari, met yesterday with the general director of Parasite and Infectious Diseases of the Saudi Ministry of Health, Nasser Al Zueim, and the technician at the Vaccines division, Mohamed Baksh, who demonstrated interest in buying Brazilian vaccines.