UAE companies return to Algeria after 10 years of withdrawal

Aabar Group, which belong to Abu Dhabi Fund for Investment, the investment power of the Government of Abu Dhabi, succeeded in re-sending business confidence and UAE’s Contractors in the Algerian market after its success in the embodiment of many projects in the car industry, the industrial vehicle and transport of trucks and engines in collaboration with the Ministry of National Defense under the sign Mercedes and Deutz.

Value of the mentioned projects in cooperation between the Defense Ministry and Aabar reached 720 million dollars, and a partnership project between the German and Emirate companies is expect to produce 15,000 buses, trucks and wagons with different Mercedes signs annually on beginning of November 2014, in the factory of Rouiba in Algiers, as well as the 8,000 cars, especially in the Industrial Zone Bouchekif in Tiaret city (western Algeria), in addition to 25,000 of Deuz engines in the industrial zone of Oued Hmimime in Constantine (Eastern Algeria).

To confirm the quality of economic relationships between the two countries, an Algerian delegation, led by a Deputy Defense Minister and Army Chief of Staff in Emirate of Dubai, visited on last November the International Air Exhibition and discuss with the UAE leaders the potential for cooperation and support of UAE investments in Algeria.

The move encouraged a group of companies and UAE businessmen to redirect their attention to the Algerian market, especially after the start of recovery from the effects of the global financial crisis, which prompted some UAE companies to rely on their efforts gradually.

Well-informed Arab sources told Echorouk, that many UAE companies returned to the capital in a quiet, especially the United Eastern Group, which has been able to build solid business relationships in many sectors.

United Eastern Group owned by the businessman Mohamed Ali Sharfa operates in many economic sectors, including the oil and gas industry, through the activities of exploration, production and drilling of wells, in addition to the construction sector, Designing, Offshore Construction, engineering services, architectural and consulting engineering, civil construction and infrastructure Construction, electro-mechanical engineering, tourism and transformation manufacturing, food and transportation industries.

Mohamad Ali Sharfa was forced to withdraw his operations from Algeria in 2003 under pressure of local lobbies which launched a fierce media campaign against him, to the extent of being accused of having ties with radical Islamic groups, as well as targeting him in the file of the second license for mobile phone that was won by the group Orascom Telecom in July 2001, after the withdrawal of many of the Western and Arab companies, including the United Eastern Group.

Sharfa’s good relationships with President Bouteflika, like a lot of investment groups from the United Arab Emirates and other Arab countries, did not help in access to Algeria and work in it, because of the fierce resistance from local lobbies for each Easterner, and those companies were forced to withdraw from Algeria, one after the other.