Economy Minister Mlađan Dinkić has said that Serbia and the United Arab Emirates will sign an interstate agreement covering many areas later this month. The deal will serve as the legal basis for a contract with the Al Dahra company.
After a meeting with a delegation from Al Dahra, Dinkić said the goal is to sign the contract sometime in March, when a joint company in which Serbia will have a 20 percent stake will be established.
Dinkić said the Arab company intends to build five food processing plants in Serbia.
Al Dahra is also interested in Port of Pančevo and around 40 hectares of government-owned land in the city should be used to build a new port.
The government and Al Dahra are also talking about the possibility of investing EUR 40 million in the medium term in new ships for the state-owned Yugoslavian River Shipbuilding.
Dinkić said Royal Group, whose delegation visited Belgrade recently, is planning to open a bank in the Serbian capital this spring, which would be the first bank from the UAE in the region.
Minister of Agriculture Goran Knežević said cooperation with Al Dahra is one of the best deals Serbia has made in recent decades and will present a new step forward for Serbian agriculture which will gain knowledge, technology and money.
Al Dahra vice chairman Khadim Al Darei said the company’s investment in Serbia will total around EUR 300 million, which includes investments in production and equipment for the new plant.
He said Serbia is an important country for his company because the goods that will be produced there will go not only to the UAE but will be sold across the world.
He noted that Serbia has great unexploited natural resources – water, land and people, which will make a winning combination together with the money which will come from the UAE.
Al Darei said Serbia would benefit greatly from the deal with Al Dahra, considering all the investments the company is planning.
Source B92