RIYADH: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) announced on Sunday $10 billion in investment agreements between the Arab world and China, on the first day of the 10th Arab-China Business Conference in Riyadh. The agreements crossed over 30 deals across an array of fields including renewables, technology, agriculture, minerals, real estate, tourism, healthcare, and supply chains.
Saudi Arabia Announces Investment Agreements at Arab-China Business Conference
The B2B agreements signed on the sidelines of the conference included a $533 million agreement between Zhonghuan International Group (Hong Kong) Limited and the AMR ALuwlaa Company to set up a factory to decrease iron ore and produce iron pellets for smelting plants in the Kingdom.
These agreements included a $500 million cooperation deal between China National Geological and Mining Corp. and Saudi Arabia’s ASK Group for the financing, development, construction, and operation of an Arabian Shield copper mining scheme.
A $266 million framework deal was inked between China Gezhouba Group International Engineering Co., Ltd. Mabani Al- Safwah Ltd, and Top International Engineering Corporation Arabia Ltd. for advanced building construction in Saudi Arabia.
The government-to-business deals included a $5.6 billion contract between MISA and Human Horizons, a Chinese developer of autonomous driving technologies and manufacturer of electric cars under the HiPhi brand, to set up a joint venture for automotive research, manufacturing, development, and sales.
A $266 million agreement was also inked by MISA with Hong Kong-based Android developer Hibobi Technology Limited to develop and explore tourism and other apps, and a $250 million agreement facilitated by MISA between Saudi railway firm SABATCO and Chinese government-owned and publicly traded rolling stock manufacturer CRRC to produce rail wagons and wheels in the Kingdom.
The agreements also included a $150 million agreement between the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources and Chinese industrial manufacturer Sunda to produce caustic soda, derivatives, chlorine, chlorinated paraffin, and PVC in Saudi Arabia.
Vice Chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Hu Chunhua; Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit; UN World Tourism Organization Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili; and government top officials and ministers from the Arab world also attended the event.
Private sector participants in the conference included top executives from some of China’s most important firms, including Sieyuan Electric Company, Dahua Technology, and Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group Company Limited.
The second day of the event will include a closing keynote from Dilma Rousseff, ex-president of Brazil and incumbent president of New Development Bank, established by (BRICS) to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development programs in developing economies and emerging markets.
