British Minister of Investment to (Maaal): 450 British companies came to explore opportunities in Saudi Arabia… we discuss cooperation with “Insurance Authority”

By Fahd Al-Talal

British Investment Minister Dominic Johnson said that 450 British companies have come to Saudi Arabia, to explore investment and commercial opportunities, and the vast majority of them have had strong activity during the past 48 hours.

Johnson added in an interview with the Maaal newspaper on the sidelines of the “Together for a Great Future” forum: We held a wonderful round table with Naji Al-Tamimi, Chairman of the Insurance Authority, and this is confirmation that the Saudi market is open to the British insurance sector, and we lead the world in the field of international insurance, so… Having this opportunity to do this kind of collaboration on the ground is really attractive.

The Minister of Investment continued: The purpose of the Great Future event is to strengthen relations between governments to highlight British commercial activities in the Kingdom, as well as to present the opportunities available in Saudi Arabia to the United Kingdom.

Regarding the education sector, Johnson confirmed the signing of an agreement with the University of Strathclyde to open a branch in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, considering that education is an interesting field and that there are a number of British schools and universities that are opening their doors here in Saudi Arabia.

In the field of health care, Johnson indicated that they look forward to cooperating with the Saudi health authorities regarding how to operate the virtual hospital, which is a wonderful innovation, and we would like to imitate it again in the United Kingdom.

Regarding the field of cooperation in clean energy, Johnson stressed that the clean energy opportunities here are as great as any other country in the world, especially when it comes to the production and formation of solar energy and hydrogen. Therefore, we have a number of discussions about that, and there are Saudi companies investing in the United Kingdom to produce hydrogen and the equation. Carbon such as Alfanar Group, SABIC and major industrial companies, which is great for us because they have huge industrial experience. We also have a carbon capture facility in the North Sea, which most countries don’t have, and we’ll be able to combine that with our offshore wind farm capabilities as well, in order to produce sustainable aviation fuel, and also hydrogen.

Regarding the free trade agreement between the United Kingdom and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Johnson said: “We are excited about this agreement and everyone wants a free trade agreement with the United Kingdom, and we are really keen to conclude a trade deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and I believe that the Gulf Cooperation Council countries are really keen to Conclude a business deal with us.”

Johnson revealed that British Trade Minister Kemi Badenoch discussed with Dr. Majid Al-Qasabi, Minister of Trade, during the past 24 hours, indicating that this indicates great readiness on both sides.

He continued: “We are all working towards a common goal. We hope this thing will happen, and what we want to do is get a good deal that suits everyone, get it done and then we can start doing more business with each other.”