RIYADH, 18 July — A group of German companies has expressed interest to invest in the Kingdom’s infrastructure projects, a high-level source at the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry said.
The source said that a consortium of German and international banks was studying prospects of financing Saudi infrastructure projects. The Kingdom is the second largest importer of German products.
The source also pointed out that a high-level German business delegation will visit the Kingdom early next year to explore investment prospects. There have been contacts between the council and German firms regarding investments.
Osama Kurdi, secretary-general of CSCCI, said German and international banks were motivated to finance projects in the Kingdom because investments in the Kingdom are not affected by global economic changes.
Saudi Arabia is also a member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), he pointed out, adding that OECD applies Basel financial regulations.
“The Kingdom’s financial capabilities will help reduce the pressure on German banks,” Kurdi said.
Saudi-German joint investments in the Kingdom now stand at SR4.2 billion, which is distributed in 94 projects — 38 industries and 56 service companies — with German investments reaching 30 percent. German exports to the Kingdom amounted to SR3.3 billion (2.9 billion euros) and imports 956 millio euros..
Saudi Arabia and Germany are working toward to sign two major agreements — one to avoid double taxation and the other to promote maritime shipping.
Most foreign investments in the Kingdom are centered on chemicals and plastics due to abundance of raw materials. Investments in the two sectors account for 87.4 percent of the total.
