(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Irfan Bukhari / The Peninsula
To promote bilateral trade relations, nine Wales-based companies led by Welsh government will visit Doha. This was announced yesterday by the Welsh government on its official website gov-wales.
'The Welsh Government is leading nine Wales-based businesses on a trade mission to Qatar this weekend aimed at helping boost Welsh export opportunities to the Middle East, it announced.
'The visit comes ahead of the launch of daily direct flights between Cardiff Airport and Doha next May and is aimed at helping businesses capitalise on the trading and export opportunities presented by the new long-haul route, it adds.
Meanwhile, Qatar Airways recently announced that it would begin operating daily direct flights from Cardiff Airport, with the inaugural flight due to depart on May 1, 2018. The new service between the Welsh capital and Doha will be operated on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The Cardiff service will be the first regular direct long haul flight linking Wales and South West England to a major global hub in the Gulf region seven days a week - benefiting both leisure and business travellers by creating a wealth of long-haul connectivity.
According to information shared on gov.wales, a diverse selection of Welsh companies including Teddington Engineered Solutions in Llanelli, the British Rototherm Company in Port Talbot and food producer Rachel's Dairy in Aberystwyth, will travel first to Qatar, and then to Kuwait, in an effort to help companies forge new trading relationships with businesses operating in the Middle East.
After the blockade, businesses from across the world are establishing direct contacts with Doha-based companies to develop business partnerships. Last week, the Netherlands Embassy also organised a business-to-business horticulture matchmaking event in which leading Dutch greenhouse companies presented their technology to their Qatari agro producer companies. Seven leading greenhouse companies including Boom Group, Bosman Van Zaal, Certhon, Priva, Westland International Projects, Aldo van Os and VEK Global Greenhouse Projects had shared their products and technologies with their Qatari counterparts.
The website of Welsh government also quoted Welsh Economy Secretary Ken Skates saying: 'This Welsh Government led trade mission to Qatar and Kuwait is well timed coming ahead of the introduction of daily and direct flights between Cardiff Airport and Doha that will transform Wales's relationship with the Middle East.
Skates further said: 'Exporting really does have the potential to transform a business and take it to the next level and as the UK prepares to leave the EU, increasing the value of Welsh exports to other markets across the world is more important than ever. While Qatar is a relatively small county, it is one of the richest in the world with a growing population, and a profile that will only be heightened over the coming years.
One of the companies visiting is AmniTec. AmniTech manufactures composite, fluoropolymer, and metallic industrial hose assemblies at its base in Merthyr Tydfil and supplies oil and gas, chemical processing, power generation, refrigeration, and other industrial markets.
Jeff Sims, business development manager for Amnitec said: 'The Middle East is an interesting market for us. We don't currently have a distribution network for our products there and there is the potential indirect route to the oil, gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) end users that interests us. We are currently manufacturing LNG composites and very high temperature pressure hoses at our base in Wales. We want to promote awareness of our Wales-made products and are keen to find out if there are markets for these products in these countries. We also want to find business partnerships.
MENAFN2909201700630000ID1095908693
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.