UAE infrastructure opportunities for Russian manufacturing companies

Organizer: Russian-Emirates Business Council under the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation.

Venue: the city of Kazan, IEC KAZAN EXPO, Hall 15

Time: May 18, 2023, 15:40–17:00

Moderator: Sergey Nikolayevich Gorkov, Chairman of the Russian-Emirates Business Council, General Director - Chairman of the Board of Rosgeo, AO

Speakers:

Rashid Al Teneiji, Director of the Trade Development Department of the UAE Ministry of Economy;

Chekushov Roman Andreevich, Director of the Department of International Cooperation and Licensing in the Sphere of Foreign Trade of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation;

Khalid Al Marzouki, Vice President, International Business Development, Khalifa Abu Dhabi Economic Zones (KEZAD);

Busev Aleлыey Sergeevich, Executive Director of the Russian-Emirates Business Council (REBC);

Rabia Al-Mukhalati, Managing Director of Ali&Sons Oil&Gas;

Lyubimova Tatyana Yuryevna, Logistics Consultant, IW EXPRESS;

Les Ivan Valeryevich, Director, Oil Tec;

Oleg Aleksandrovich Kochetkov, General Director, StankoMashStroy, OOO;

Serikov Nikolai Nikolaevich, owner of the company IT Scan.

The session was devoted to the development of cooperation between Russia and the United Arab Emirates, the prospects for cooperation in the field of export and investment were discussed. The volume of supplies of products to the UAE from Russia is growing. At the beginning of 2023, the UAE ranked eighth in the list of Russia's top export destinations. Rashid Al Teneiji, Director of the Trade Development Department of the UAE Ministry of Economy, noted that over the past year, trade between Russia and the UAE has doubled and has already reached USD10 billion. Bilateral investments are actively developing, thus in 2020-2021 the UAE has invested more than 5 billion dirhams in the Russian economy, and 4 billion dollars have been invested by Russia in the UAE. The country pursues a policy of attracting foreign business, in particular, foreign investors and entrepreneurs will be able to fully own 100% of their business in the United Arab Emirates.

Roman Chekushov, Director of the Department of International Cooperation and Licensing in the Field of Foreign Trade of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade noted that the UAE is of great interest to Russian business. Now is the time of great opportunities, which allows increasing the trade turnover between the countries. Foreign buyers of products and importers are provided with preferential loans. It is also necessary to develop cooperation in the field of technology transfer and investment.

Khalid Al Marzouki, Vice President for International Business Development of the Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi (KEZAD), presented the KEZAD, Free Economic Zone, uniting 12 economic zones. This is a whole ecosystem with a multimodal logistics infrastructure, including a zone of the port, with an area of 550 sq. km, including 1,850 residents and 70 thousand jobs. The government expects to attract to the territory of the FEZ KEZAD not only the largest holdings and transnational corporations, but also representatives of small and medium-sized businesses engaged in various industrial sectors.

Aleksey Busev, REDS Executive Director, spoke about the project of Eurasian trade and Industrial Hub establishment based on KEZAD, which is planned to become a new center for the localization of Russian enterprises in the UAE. He explained that the purpose of this Eurasian trade and industrial hub is to create a one-stop shop for production, cross-border trade and access of Russian companies' products to foreign markets, as well as obtaining additional tools for business support and development. The hub residents will receive preferential terms and discounts for renting land, space, discounts from partner companies and full support in organizing a company and doing business in the UAE.

Rabia Al Muhalati, Managing Director of Ali & Sons Oil & Gas introduced his company, which was founded in 1979 and is a family business. The headquarters is located in Abu Dhabi in the Tourist Club area. Directions of the company's activity: petroleum products manufacturing, automotive industry, original design manufacturing, property management, tourism and others. The company has started cooperation with Russian companies; it provides services in the field of business registration and investment in the UAE, and also offers partners ready-made facilities and assistance in the manufacturing sector.

Tatyana Lyubimova, logistics consultant, IW EXPRESS, noted the record growth in trade between Russia and the UAE and spoke about the structure of imports and exports. Over 4,000 Russian enterprises operate in the UAE. Among all subjects of the Russian Federation, Tatarstan is the most interested in the Middle East market.

Ivan Les, director of Oil Tec, gave a brief description of Oil Tec, which is engaged in the repair and maintenance of wells. The company significantly reduces the customer's costs during the repair and operation of wells through the use of highly efficient and safe solutions based on Russian technologies, taking into account the local characteristics of customers in Russia and abroad. It is interesting for the company to consider the UAE market, having experience of cooperation in Egypt.

Oleg Kochetkov, General Director of StankoMashStroy, OOO, presented his company, a modern high-tech enterprise for the production of metalworking equipment, carrying out assembly on its production facilities from simple mechanical machine tools (analogues of 16k20) to high-precision VTM machining centers. At the moment, the company needs to expand production, among other opportunities, including abroad.

Nikolay Serikov, the owner of IT Scan, introduced the audience to the engineering development of the company, allowing the enterprises to solve the problems of transnational production in condition, when the components are supplied from different countries, and when there exists a problem of shortage of the highly qualified personnel, who could be familiar with the particular characteristics of components from different countries, as well as the problem of the carbon footprint reduction.