QFZA’s Markets Manager Fahad Al Kuwari.
The Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA) is receiving several applications from Turkish companies which are interested to set up ship manufacturing businesses at the MARSA port in Umm Alhoul Free Zone, an official said at the Qatar-German Business Forum which was hosted by the Qatar Chamber (QC) yesterday.
Speaking during the event, QFZA’s Markets Manager Fahad Al Kuwari, said the new port and marine cluster, which is between seven and eight metres deep, has been attracting companies involved in the marine industry.
“We have some Turkish companies who are very interested in ship manufacturing. And we’re looking into evaluating one of these companies to set up in the MARSA port,” he said.
The MARSA port, which was designed to be a fully integrated marine ecosystem, can support a wide range of marine business. The port features several key activities which include, but are not limited to ship building and repair, internal design and fit-out, boat brokerage and maritime research. It can also service ships up to 70 metres long.
During the event, Al Kuwari also highlighted Qatar’s thriving ICT scene, and reiterated that Qatar is the leading country in the world in terms of Internet penetration.
He said Turkish ICT companies also have a first mover advantage in Qatar.
He added: “The best success story we have that I share around the world is about a Turkish company.
They are an ICT company, and we attracted them from Istanbul about a year ago. They had 12 employees and they came to Qatar to bid on a tender with the Ministry of Transport and Communications through the TASMU Digital Valley.
Today, within a few months, they are Microsoft’s official partner in Qatar. They were a very small ICT company in Turkey that managed to make a big impact in Qatar, because the sector is so young. So you have a first mover advantage, coupled with the fact that our political relations with Turkey are very strong”.
