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New Enterprise East Investments launches Center for Water & Waste Management Technologies

UAE Investment Firm creates Water-focused and Green Technology venture incubator
Abu Dhabi, 18 January 2009 - New Enterprise East Investments (NEEI), a Luxembourg-registered investment firm today announced the establishment of the Center for Water & Waste Management Technologies (CWaMa) at its Abu Dhabi headquarters facility.

CWaMa is a first-of-its-kind regional center where companies with products and services related to the latest technologies for water and waste management, as well as university academics and researchers in the field, will be gathering in a one-stop shop for the MENA countries' water and waste management needs.

Water has always been a scarce and precious resource in the MENA region, and with the enormous job-creation (and thus huge population growth) forecast for the next 20 years, it has become ever more critical for the region to focus on water as "the oil of the 21^st century".

Moreover, huge population growth will create additional complexities concerning the waste that all these humans will generate. The human influx has been forecast, the water shortage is a given, and the explosive growth in waste is a key concern among regional leaders. The need for countries to promote the re-use of consumer products, improve garbage collection and recycling, and to better manage their scarce resources and environment, all are drivers of CWaMa's creation, development and success.

Dr. Hamid Najafi, NEEI's Director tasked with the development of CWaMa noted that "this center is recruiting best-of-breed CleanTech companies and environmental researchers from Europe, Japan, the USA and the rest of the world, to "set up shop" at CWaMa and to begin serving the water and waste management needs of the region. The enterprises we invite to our center will not only locate their regional Business Development and Sales Support activities here, but they will also cluster to become a focal point for local research and development, both at the Center as well as at universities region-wide".

NEEI's Founder and CEO, Fred Korangy, added "our primary goal is to create the most advanced and all-encompassing center for water and waste management in the world. And after nearly a year's worth of discussions with regional governments, development organizations and CleanTech visionaries around the world, NEEI concluded that there is no place more suitable for such a center than right here in the UAE, where the water is scarce, the population is rising and a progressive government is investing heavily in Clean Technologies".

CWaMa will immediately benefit the GCC's and broader MENA region's requirements for the acceleration of Clean and Green technologies, with Water and Waste Management topping the list of critical needs, followed closely by Alternate and Renewable Energy technologies, another NEEI focus area.

Entrepreneurs in MENA still face the many obstacles inherent to an immature lending and venture financing environment. Commercial lending only goes so far, and traditional private equity investors generally target far more mature enterprises. CWaMa facilitates the establishment of younger and otherwise new-to-the-region CleanTech enterprises, and creates the industry and financial market connections that they require.

Concluded Korangy: "for my team and me, our mission has been validated by the fact that many of the companies that approached NEEI and CWaMa are looking for precisely this support. The fundamental issue is that the Middle East may by many still be seen as merely a region to sell in, rather than one wherein the business climate is rapidly improving to the point that global technology leaders can develop and nurture new technologies there. NEEI and CWaMa are here to promote this vision"".

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About New Enterprise East Investments (NEEI)
NEEI is a Luxembourg-registered investment firm with principal offices along the Dubai - Abu Dhabi corridor. The firm specializes in (a) Business Acceleration support for mid-to-large US & Euro companies seeking growth in the Gulf Region, Venture Mentoring for smaller enterprises entering, or already operating in, the GCC, (c) Venture Funding for entities seeking to grow/expand their business in the GCC and broader MENA markets, and (d) Investment Banking support for larger corporate initiatives. For more information please visit: www.neei.net

Released by Momentum on behalf of NEEI
Press Contact: Sonja Ohly
+971-4-390-1630
E-mail: Sonja@Momentum.cc

© Press Release 2009

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