Sharjah Gets $ 500 M Investment From India

Sharjah is all out to woo Indian businessmen. In the past few years, out of the total foreign investment made in Sharjah, over 30 per cent of the FDI, amounting to approximately $500 million, came from India.

"For the first time since 1998 we are making a concerted and focused attempt to woo Indian business people and create awareness about the incentives which Sharjah offers at Hamriyah Free Zone and Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (Saif zone)," chairman of General Authority for Management of Sharjah Free Zones Tariq Faisal Al Qassimi told Business Standard yesterday.

According to Qassimi, the Sharjah government has taken Indian investments so seriously that his organisation is contemplating opening an office in India which will function as a liaison office here.

 

Qassimi said during his interaction with the Indian companies here, the feedback has been very positive. "Companies like Godrej (in the safe zone), Gujarat Ambuja and IOC are already there in Sharjah with multi-million dollar projects," he added.

For example, IOC has formed a joint venture with a consortium of local oil companies for oil terminals to carry out a project worth approximately $200 million.

"What we are trying to showcase during our current roadshows in India is that Sharjah free trade zones offer immense opportunities to Indian businesspeople," Qassimi said.

The Hamriya Free Zone extends over an area of approximately 10 million sq metres which among others includes facilities like deep water port accommodating dedicated petrochemical and bulk handling of cargo berths.