Abu Dhabi: The signing of a Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) in New Delhi on Thursday may encourage similar deals and advance the UAE’s commitment to India infrastructure. India seeks $1 trillion (Dh3.67 trillion) investments in greenfield infrastructure projects in the next five years, of which 50 per cent is expected from private sector or foreign investors, according to M.K Lokesh, Indian Ambassador to the UAE.
Apart from a wide scope for UAE investors in India, BIPPA can open opportunities for Indian investors in the UAE also, MA Yousuf Ali, Managing Director of Emke/Lulu Group, told Gulf News on Thursday.
“Many Indian companies are already very active here in various fields and with the Dubai hosting the Expo 2020, many more new opportunities will open up in various sectors,” he said.
Due to fears over red tape, foreign investors and even non-resident Indians (NRIs) were concerned about doing business in India, according to Ram Buxani, Chairman of ITL Group in Dubai. The BIPPA will remove such concerns, he said.
Sudhir Kumar Shetty, Chief Operating Officer of the UAE Exchange Centre, agreed, saying the BIPPA can remove the apprehensions the foreign investors had about India. This is the time India require a lot of investments and this agreement can facilitate it, Shetty said.
The UAE and India have a long history of trade and investment, most recently signing a high level task force on investments in February, giving a big boost to bilateral investment relations. It did not have the expected results due to the lack of the (BIPPA). In the first meeting of the bilateral taskforce in February 2013, the UAE had promised $2 billion investments in infrastructure projects in India, but there was no headway, because the UAE was concerned about protection for its investments without BIPPA.
Although the agreement came into focus again following deal between Etihad Airways and India’s Jet Airways, with the former to acquire 24 per cent stake in the latter for $339 million deal, still the signing was delayed. The Etihad–Jet deal has enhanced air connectivity between the UAE and India, with a huge increase in the number of seats.
The signing of a Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement in New Delhi on Thursday has raised the prospect of a India- GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Free Trade Agreement, IANS news agency reported quoting unnamed Indian officials. India now has similar agreements with all other (GCC) countries — Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain.
