Dubai, UAE:
Emirates Transport (ET), Hala China and the China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to pave the way for the production of electric vehicles in the UAE.
The MoU was signed at the China Pavilion in Expo 2020 Dubai by Faryal Mohamed Tawakul, Acting CEO of Emirates Transport, Abubaker Al Khoori, Board Member at Hala China, and Fang Yanshui, President of China Machinery Engineering Corporation, who signed the MoU through a video conference from Beijing, China.
The signing ceremony was attended by His Excellency Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and through video call by His Excellency Dr Ali Obaid Al Dhaheri, Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to the People’s Republic of China.
Also attending the signing ceremony were His Excellency Li Xuhang, Consul-General of the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Dubai, Sheikh Majid Al Mualla, Chairman of Hala China, His Excellency Juma Al Kait, Assistant Undersecretary for Foreign Trade Affairs at the Ministry of Economy, and Mr Wu Yi, Commercial Counsellor of the People’s Republic of China to Dubai.
Hala China, a practical platform that promotes economic and cultural exchange and advances investment cooperation between the UAE and China, also signed two additional framework agreements directly with ET and CMEC, respectively, to facilitate the implementation of the MoU.
The agreement will initially see ET provide consultancy and support for the marketing and sales of Chinese new energy vehicles (NEVs) across the UAE and the MENA region. This will be followed by a period of extensive field trails and research into the Gulf market to help shape the next phase in which the three main signatories, led by CMEC, will work together to build automotive manufacturing assembly lines for electric vehicles in the UAE.
The Chinese industrial giant CMEC will also deliver the infrastructure and facilities required for the operations and maintenance of the electric vehicles.
The joint project is in alignment with the Make it in the Emirates drive and the Operation 300bn, the UAE’s industrial strategy aiming to increase the contribution of the manufacturing industry to the economic output of the country, while also being expected to create employment opportunities and provide a strong boost to local SMEs.
Faryal Mohamed Tawakul, Acting CEO of Emirates Transport, expressed her delight at the deal and underscored the keenness of ETto expand and diversify its strategic partnerships with major Chinese companies. She said: “We are working diligently to utilise our extensive experience in the transport sector and auto maintenance services through the development of successful, quality partnerships and we are looking forward to a fruitful cooperation between all signatories, including in the clean energy sector,” added Tawakul.
Sheikh Majid Al Mualla, Chairman of Hala China, said: “As the UAE continues to make significant progress towards becoming a global leader in the renewable energy sector, Hala China has been working tirelessly to foster new energy vehicles developments and create future industries by leveraging existing Chinese NEV technologies. We aim to create Make it in the Emiratesnew energy vehicle brands and introduce them to the local as well as regional markets, positioning this as the regional standard of NEV research and development, with the joint efforts of all signatories. We very much look forward to what will definitely be a successful collaboration.”
Fang Yanshui, President of CMEC, added: “CMEC is be pleased to align and support the efforts of the UAE’s strategic plan of industry diversification and carbon neutrality by 2050 through our partnership with Emirates Transport and Hala China which will give us an opportunity to channel our core strengths and capabilities for development of industrial sectors.”
