Yinchuan, China: The presence of Chinese investors in Dubai and Abu Dhabi may be old news in 2011, but Fujairah is now keen to get in on the action.
Fujairah's Free Zone Authority (FFZA) is making a push for investments by Chinese companies that can come in independently or in collaboration with local businesses, its director general Sharif Habib Al Awadi told a meeting during the ongoing second China-Arab States Trade Forum in the western Chinese city of Yinchuan.
FFZA is working on plans to build a refinery with a capacity of 300,000 tonnes in collaboration with partners in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Europe, he said. This is besides the 300,000-tonne refinery being built at present, he said while outlining the growing importance of Fujairah as an investment destination.
"We are open to investment proposals. We will look at your proposals and respond very quickly," he told the meeting attended by representatives of Chinese oil and other companies.
"You have advanced technology. We can take advantage of that. Anything to do with processing or pharmaceuticals is welcome. Food is perfect, and we also want to attract manufacturing companies," he said.
"I want to skip the methods used by traditional free trade zones, where anyone with money is welcome. I want to bring in technology," he said.
Emphasising the importance of Fujairah, Al Awadi said the zone will able to handle 50 per cent of the oil movements in the UAE soon.
