Rakia aims for $5b in investment
Investment authority has registered 600 firms this year and hopes to double that figure
The Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (Rakia) has attracted $3 billion (Dh11 billion) worth of foreign direct investment (FDI) since its formation in 2005 and is eyeing a total of $5 billion in industrial investments by 2013, Rakia's chief executive officer said in Abu Dhabi yesterday.
"This year, we are hoping another $500 million of new investment will come in," Dr. Khater Massaad told reporters shortly after a presentation on Rakia and the investment potential in Ras Al Khaimah at the Rakia Business Forum 2010.
"We have already registered 600 companies in the first six months of 2010 and are looking at registering another 600 this year," said Massaad, adding that in 2009, 600 new companies were registered by Rakia.
He said that Rakia has registered more than 6,000 companies. Of these, 2,900 are onshore and more than 3,300 are offshore.
Massaad described Rakia as a cost-effective destination for companies with no hassles of corporate tax or income tax, no foreign exchange controls, or trade barriers or quotas, and 100-per-cent foreign ownership in free zones. "There is no shortage of electricity in the industrial zone. The electricity supply from Fewa [Federal Electricity and Water Authority] is complemented by a 65-megawatt power plant at Al Ghail and a 45-megawatt power plant at Al Hamra. For the next three years, there's enough power for industries," he said.
He said investors from India topped the list of foreign direct investors in the industrial zone, adding other investors in the zone include those from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and countries in Europe.
He said the global daily production at RAK Ceramics, the world's largest ceramics manufacturer, had reached 10,000 pieces of sanitaryware.
RAK Ceramics boasts export orders to more than 130 countries and has manufacturing plants in Ras Al Khaimah, India, China, Iran, Sudan and Bangladesh.
Peter Schuster, RAK Offshore's general manager, said the benefits for investors included the absence of capital gains tax, value-added tax and withholding tax.
Massaad said Ras Al Khaimah's gross domestic product in 2009 had grown 14 per cent on year in 2009 and stood at $4.30 billion.
‘Slated to double'
"This is slated to double in the next five to six years," he added.
Massaad said Ras Al Khaimah's growth was being driven by manufacturing, services, tourism, real estate and trade.
Ras Al Khaimah had been accorded sovereign credit ratings of ‘A' for the long-term, and ‘A-1' in the short-term by S&P, he added.
The plan for Rakia is to create a "unique mechanism that will support small and medium enterprises," he added.
