Brasília – Qatar wants to invest in Brazil. In a meeting today (20) between the emir of Qatar, Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, and Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, in Brasília, the state-owned Qatar Holding signed memoranda of understanding with mining company Vale, with the Bank of Brazil pension fund (Previ) and with the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES).
The objective of the agreements is to prospect possible investment in Brazil and abroad in partnership with Brazilian companies. Representatives of the government and of state-owned companies had meetings with executives of several large Brazilian companies, both public and private, seeking opportunities.
The Qatari people are interested in sectors like energy, real-estate development and agribusiness, among others. “They are interested in investment opportunities in partnership with Brazilian companies,” said BNDES president Luciano Coutinho to ANBA.
According to him, due to the text signed, the bank is going to help identify these possibilities. “There is already prospection by Brazilian companies”, said Coutinho. “They [the Qatari] have a vision of medium-term investment, which is positive. They want some liquidity, but accept to invest expecting return, for example, in five years, and Brazil has many interesting projects,” he added.
The executive pointed out activities like the production and exploration of oil, leasing of equipment and the sector of energy in general.
The president at the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Salim Taufic Schahin, who participated in the luncheon in honour of the emir at the Itamaraty, and who had an opportunity to speak to the Arab head of state and to the CEO of Qatar Holding, Hamad Al-Saied, said that Al-Thani spoke about the idea of financing the opening of Arabic schools in Brazil, and Al-Saied called for the Chamber to suggest projects for investment. The Foreign Relations vice president at the organisation, Professor Helmi Nasr, was also at the luncheon.
Participation
The participation of companies and state-owned funds from Qatar in projects abroad is generally through minority participation in projects and companies. The country’s sovereign fund, for example, has participation in mining company Vale, acquired last year.
According to sources in the Brazilian government, the Qataris are not only interested in enterprises, but also in the direct purchase of shares of companies like the Bank of Brazil and Petrobras. In the case of Previ, Qatar Holding wants to make joint investment.
To the head of the Trade Promotion Program Division at the Brazilian Foreign Office (Itamaraty), Rodrigo Azeredo, the agreements signed showed “that more and more, investors from the Gulf prefer to deal directly with Brazil”. “In the past, the potential investment mainly came from other means, mainly operators in Europe. This direct travel is an important aspect,” he said.
In an address at the luncheon in honour of the emir, at the Itamaraty, president Lula said that the agreements signed “reflect the potential that brings together two dynamic and complementary economies.”
He added that the conclusion of negotiations of the free trade agreement between the Mercosur and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) should make economic relations between both countries more promising. “We count on the efforts of Qatar to complete negotiations,” said Lula. Apart from Qatar, the GCC also includes Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Oman.
The president also said that Brazil has a domestic market “in full expansion”, as well as other attractions like the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC), the 2014 World Cup, the 2016 Olympics, in Rio de Janeiro, and the solidity of the financial market.
Lula also said that the potential creation of an aerial route between both countries should intensify business even further. The two governments signed an aerial agreement and another to avoid dual taxing of airlines that operate between both nations. They also signed treaties regarding political consultation, the cancellation of the need for diplomatic visas and economic operations.
The emir, in turn, pointed out the importance Lula granted to the development of relations between Latin America and the Arab world and praised initiatives of Brazil in the foreign scenery, especially regarding the search for peace between Israel and Palestine.
He pointed out that the two countries have common points of view, but that it is necessary to make greater efforts to expand trade, cultural and investment relations.
*Translated by Mark Ament