Agência Brasil*
Algiers – The minister of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, Luiz Fernando Furlan, stated today (08) that Brazil may reduce the trade deficit with Algeria with new enterprises in the country, especially in the area of civil construction. Furlan is participating in the presidential committee that started today a visit to four countries in Africa.
"There are great possibilities in the area of low-income housing. A Brazilian consortium is disputing participation in this program, in which the Algerian government intends to build 500,000 houses a year. And there is a great infrastructure program, evaluated at US$ 60 billion in five years," he said.
Construction company Andrade Gutierrez recently won a tender for the construction of a barrage in the Arab country and is participating, through its Portuguese subsidiary, Zagope, in a tender for the construction of a highway that is going to cut the country from East to West.
"In the last talk I had with Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, he told us that the decision of this tender would not focus exclusively on prices. He would like to focus the tender on companies and countries that may proceed with relations of services and engagement."
Furlan travelled to Algeria in November, heading a Brazilian trade mission. He also discussed the possibility of partnerships between oil companies Petrobras (Brazilian) and Sonatrach (Algerian).
*With information from the ANBA newsroom. Translated by Mark Ament
