Saudi Arabia, Greece strengthen ties on green energy and data connectivity

PHOTO

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia and Greece have signed a memorandum of understanding on Sunday grounded in renewable energy and have begun working on the setup of a cross-continent data link.

“Today (Sunday), we are going to be working with our Saudi counterparts over the signing of an MoU that is driven in renewable energy sources, and also the setup of a mutual project on setting up a fiber optic cable that will take data from Southeast Asia all the way to Central Europe,” said Kostas Fragogiannis, Greek deputy minister for economic diplomacy and openness.

“There has been a very good understanding so far, I believe that we are standing a couple of weeks behind signing the (data link) agreement,” he added.

Representatives from the two countries met in Riyadh on Sunday at the Saudi-Greek Investment Forum aimed at capitalizing on a long economic relationship that has slumped in recent years.

“There is a strategic, political, historic and friendly relationship between the countries that has not been capitalized as much in the economic framework,” Fragogiannis said.

“There seems to be a vision that is shared between the two leaders, and the idea behind this visit of ours to Saudi Arabia is to capitalize on the friendship and the value set that has been said between the two leaders and in between the two countries.

He added that: “The trade flow of 1.2 billion euros and foreign direct investment between Greece and Saudi Arabia does not reflect the level that it should be. So we are here to deliver an action plan that is specific and focused.”

Fragogiannis told Arab News that the action plan will focus on key areas such as tourism and shipping, as well as investments in the startup community in areas involving innovation and green energy to renewable energy sources like green and blue hydrogen, “and to everything that can take us forward to a better future for the two countries.”

Other areas of mutual cooperation include infrastructure and construction, medical and pharmaceuticals and the creation of funds that will be based in Greece and will be focused towards investments in the Greek peninsula.

In maritime, they will expand on the understanding between training of the two nations that together represent “a very significant part of the world”; the fleet in the trade of flow of goods and also the trade of hydrocarbon aids and natural gas.

The Saudi-Greek Business Council was established after an MoU was signed in September last year. The council met on Sunday for the first time to explore shared areas of interest, exploring bilateral trade and investment opportunities.

The body aims to open new areas for economic cooperation, facilitate continuous interaction between the Saudi and Greek business sectors and remove obstacles to doing business.

The agreement stipulates that the joint business council will consist of representatives of Saudi and Greek business owners interested in investment and trade, and the council will hold periodic meetings in Riyadh and Athens to discuss opportunities for trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.