São Paulo – The sovereign funds of the United Arab Emirates and the São Paulo state are negotiating partnerships that could result in up to USD 20 billion in business in the next few years. From April 10 to 14, the president of the São Paulo State Agency for Promotion of Investments and Competitiveness (InvesteSP), Juan Quirós, attended the Annual Investment Meeting in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. There, Quirós met with representatives of local companies and sovereign funds, and they showed interest in doing infrastructure investments and in receiving companies and products from São Paulo.
“In São Paulo, we have several projects for investments in urban mobility, housing and infrastructure, in addition to two subway lines. We presented these opportunities to sovereign funds and they showed interest. They also want to meet with Brazilian companies interested in exporting to the region. In this case, they would offer the infrastructure and serve as incubators for the companies, which would bring their products to Dubai and export them from there”, he said.
One of the goals of the project, which was talked about with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce, is the Iranian market. After the end of sanctions, the Gulf country came back to the global market. Dubai has an interest in doing business with Iran, which is not an Arab country, due to the consumption potential of its population of more than 70 million people.
This export promotion project would require USD 5 billion, an amount to be used with both the import of products made in São Paulo state and with incentives for companies to go to Dubai, with a priority on food, beverages and healthcare products.
Meanwhile, the infrastructure projects could receive between USD 10 billion and USD 15 billion. “They were interested in everything we presented, since it represented the concession of investment for 30 years”, said Quirós.
All the initiatives will be further discussed in visits that the investors from the Emirates will make to São Paulo throughout the year. In May, a prospecting mission should visit São Paulo to further detail the meetings to be held in the second half. In November, a delegation from the UAE organized by InvesteSP will visit the state. In the following month, other mission, this one exclusively with investors from Dubai, will also visit São Paulo.
According to Quirós, São Paulo has currently BRL 60 billion (USD 16.99 billion) in potential investments for the next few years. “The demand hasn’t stopped, on the contrary. Investors believe the moment to be favorable to invest since their currency is appreciated against the real. When they get to export their products they will have competitiveness, with the dollar priced at BRL 3.60, BRL 4”, he said.
In his visit to the UAE, Quirós also met with the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), which in 2015 announced investments of BRL 400 million (USD 113.31 million) in the construction of a luxury hotel in a partnership with a Brazilian company. He also met with representatives of dnata, an Emirates Airline branch company of airport services. The dnata entered the Brazilian market last year when it bought RM Ground Services, company based in Pernambuco.
In a statement, InvestSP says that Quirós “set up an extensive business agenda” with the Brazilian Trade and Investments Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil). According to Quirós, InvestSP attended the event due to an invitation by the event’s organization addressed to governor Geraldo Alckmin (PSDB).
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
