The Saudi Agriculture and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) is establishing a Dh5-billion joint venture with UAE agricultural firm Al Dahra to invest in the Black Sea region, the Saudi livestock firm’s chief executive said.
The joint venture will invest across 10 countries in the Black Sea and will be made via acquisitions in grains and livestock, Abdullah Aldubaikhi said during a UAE-Saudi business forum in the UAE capital on Tuesday.
“It is part of the food security strategy,” Aldubaikhi said.
Al Dahra, owned mainly by Abu Dhabi investors, partners with the UAE government for its food security program. SALIC said investments would include Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Belarus, Hungary and Bulgaria.
“Investing in agriculture abroad is very important for Saudi Arabia to compensate for the grains not being produced locally, we are part and parcel of this strategy,” Aldubaikhi said.
The announcement comes days after King Salman of Saudi Arabia met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, agreeing joint investment deals worth several billion dollars.
SALIC last week said it was considering investing in a Russian grain producer owned by Russian conglomerate Sistema and members of the Louis-Dreyfus family.

Source:Arabnews