Message from Abu Dhabi, from investors who have 1,600 billion dollars on hand: We are ready to invest in Romania! GDP growth, Fitch ratings, the focus on IT&C and digitization, but also energy and logistics caught our attention. We want to be here for the long term!
The UAE International Investors Council, which holds wealth funds under its management which are active in 60 countries and have assets of 1,600 billion dollars, says it is ready to invest in the Romanian economy, especially in the IT&C and energy sectors. The UAE IIC aim is to be a long-term investor considering that Romania is seen as a gateway to the rest of Europe.
The announcement was made in an interview given to Ziarul Financiar by the Secretary General of the UAE Investors Council on November 10, 2022 in Abu Dhabi, at an event organized by The Gulf Romania Investment Council - an organization that develops and promotes commercial and investment cooperation in the business environment between Romania and GCC countries (Gulf Cooperation Council).
The accelerated rates of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in recent years, which led some analysts to characterize Romania as the "tiger of Europe", to which are added the credit ratings from the Fitch agency and the focus of some companies on digitization, but also development in energy and in logistics, are seen by the EAU Investors Council’ Secretary General as the main advantages of Romania compared to other economies.
"The strong message we send to our members is to see Romania as an attractive destination. Several parameters caught my attention: GDP growth, Fitch ratings, as well as the aspects on which Romania focuses. One of them concerns the IT&C sector and digitization, something we have in common. Then comes the energy, infrastructure and logistics space, where we believe that Romania and the UAE can evolve and improve bilateral aspects", says Jamal Bin Saif Al Jarawan, Secretary General of the UAE International Investors Council.
He gave an interview to Ziarul Financiar after the RO-UAE Tech&Energy Summit organized by Thee Gulf Romania Investment Council in Abu Dhabi.
"Investors in the UAE are very reasonable in terms of expectations. I always advise investors not to look in the short term but on a long time horizon, not less than 10-15 years.", said the Secretary General in Abu Dhabi, the Capital of the United Arab Emirates, an economy that started from scratch 50 years ago as to become today a regional and global hub, with a population of about 10 million inhabitants and a GDP of 500 billion dollars mainly based on revenues from the exploitation of oil and natural gas.
According to World Bank data, the UAE has a GDP per capita of $41,800, which is almost four times higher than the Romanian one.
"By their nature, UAE investors are very patient. They are not traders, they are extremely long-term investors. Thus, the yield becomes rational and logical.", added the Secretary General of the UAE International Investors Council that holds wealth funds such as ADIA, the Emirate "pearl" with 703 billion dollars per hand, the third largest in the world.
"In the context of which the United Arab Emirates conduct a sustained and coherent policy of attracting tech companies that have been brought to life in other states, GRIC's efforts are directed towards supporting those Romanian companies, especially in the fields of technology and energy, which are looking for financing and are open to relevant foreign markets, to meet the right investment hubs for their development.", says Paul Gheorghiu, GRIC’s Chairman.
"For the Emirates, Romania represents a gateway to the European Union, being the closest member state from this region to them, both by air and by sea. Moreover, Romania has the advantage of being economically, legislatively, and culturally aligned with the European Union, the second largest consumer market on the global stage and a favourable region for business development. On the other hand, the United Arab Emirates experienced perhaps one of the most accelerated economic developments in the world in a short period of time, creating a new development model and moving towards a complex and diversified economic system, with a special focus on new technologies.", says Paul Gheorghiu, GRIC’s Chairman.
During the RO-UAE Tech & Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding between our organization (The Gulf-Romania Investment Council) and the UAE International Investors Council, an organization that gathers under its umbrella groups of extremely relevant companies, that develop billion-dollar businesses, he says. "In this manner, we manage to bring to the discussion table companies from our country with investment funds and groups with formidable businesses such as Mubadala, ADNOC, Dubai Investments, Majid Al Futtaim, ADIA, ADQ, Emirati Investment Authority and Sharhaj Asset Management".
The efforts of the organization I coordinate (The Gulf-Romania Investment Council) are aimed at accelerating the identification and development of business opportunities between companies from the two states. "We started with the promotion of the tech and energy sectors, and we will soon facilitate cooperation for companies from the agriculture, public food, environment, transport and infrastructure, tourism, real estate sectors."
The event held on November 10 was attended by representatives of some Romanian energy companies, such as Hidroelectrica, Romgaz, Nuclearelectrica, Energobit, Oscar Downstream, Antares Group, E-Infra, Electromontaj, Enevo Group, as well as from the Emirates, Kuwait, Oman and Arabia Saudi, but also investment funds.
Romanian IT and tech companies, such as NTT Data, Kinderpedia, Footprints, Nooka, StageMe, WAM.app, Brio, Bunnyshell, Telios, Cyberwall, UAE & Romania 4IR Hub, UiPath attended the event.
Established in 2021, GRIC is a platform through which a solid foundation was built to support economic initiatives in Romania and in the Persian Gulf region, having the necessary credibility and financial strength for the development of large-scale projects.