Oman is a good place for investment: Slovak Deputy Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini

Muscat: Slovakia is looking for better trade ties with Oman, the country’s Deputy Prime Minister told the Times of Oman.
Speaking during the opening of the new Slovakian consulate, Peter Pellegrini, deputy prime minister for Investment, highlighted the potential of Oman-Slovakian relations and areas where cooperation could be increased that may include setting up a vehicle parts manufacturing facility in Oman.
“Oman is a good place for foreign investment. I have informed companies in Slovakia about this as it can be a very good opportunity. Slovakia is a world leader in producing cars per capita. We are trying to find cooperation in areas of producing car parts using plastic materials that is there in Oman in plenty. We can help companies in Oman to build factory to be sub-suppliers of spare parts for car producers in the region. We wish to cooperate with Oman in research and development of packed food that can be used for a long time, because we see big demand for this,” he said.
Oman imported $1.5 million worth of goods and services from Slovakia, while exports to the country reached $23,000. Pellegrini was on a visit to Oman with a Slovak delegation to explore trade opportunities. The delegation met Omani ministers to boost trade ties.
“We are aware of how Oman is trying to move away from its dependence on oil and gas sources to diversify the economy. We find this a great opportunity. During our visit, we were informed about the incentives that the government is giving to foreign investors like tax holidays, etc.,” he added.
New technology
“We had a meeting with the Minister of Tourism and discussed how we could promote Oman in Slovakia and get tourism promotion to Slovakia too. We are also looking at fibre optic cable technology. Finally, my favourite is a completely new technology of drilling, where our university of technology is developing a new technology, which can be very useful as Oman has big resources of oil and gas.”
According to Pellegrini, Slovakian firms are very active in sectors, such as radar and aviation in Oman, and many of them deliver solutions to Omani airports. Although, the timeline for investment is hard to determine, there is a strong chance of forging a partnership in the area of spare parts and food production.
“We have a delegation of big entrepreneurs in this area and we know Oman is trying to be independent in the food production area,” he stated.