Dubai Investments has entered into a partnership agreement with Gaussin SA, France through its industrial arm Dubai Investments Industries (DII) to set up a manufacturing plant in Dubai.

Shukri Al Mehairi, general manager of DII and Christophe Gaussin, chairman of Gaussin, signed the agreement in Dubai recently.

The joint venture is to set up a largescale production facility at an estimated cost of Dh130 million ($35.3 million) in Dubai Investments Park (DIP) to design and manufacture industrial and port trailers as well as self propelled industrial vehicles.

The technical knowhow will be provided by Gaussin which has extensive experience in logistics and handling solutions and is well known for the development of innovative solutions in this field, said a company official. 

Dubai Investments has worked in tandem with Gaussin for over eight months to investigate and determine the feasibility of the investment and to iron out every detail of the partnership, Al Mehairi noted.

“We are happy to be associated with Gaussin in establishing the first specialised trailers and industrial vehicles manufacturing unit in the UAE and in the region.'

'We believe that the winning combination of DII’s intricate knowledge of the Middle East region and Gaussin’s expertise in the business as a market leader across the globe, will take this venture to great heights and contribute in a large way to the growth of the local economy. This joint venture also underscores the importance of cooperation between the corporate sectors of UAE and France,” Al Mehairi commented. 

The production facility is under construction in a large plot of land at DIP and will be operational in the second quarter of 2009.

It will be capable of designing and manufacturing a wide range of port and industrial trailers as well as automated guided vehicles. The project which plans to employ 300 staff and workers, plans to meet the specific requirements of customers primarily in the GCC and the middle-eastern countries.

DII, the green field project development arm of Dubai Investments has made a name for itself with a number of successful subsidiaries operating in the UAE.

Gaussin SA is a listed company in the Paris stock exchange and has been involved in the design and manufacture of handling trailers for over 50 years with a client base stretching across diversified industries including ports and airports, aerospace, automotive, steel, petro-chemical and other heavy industries.    

Gaussin said Dubai was 'preferred as the base of our first production facility outside the European Union primarily due to its strategic location and its conducive environment for industrial development including investor friendly regulations, state-of-the-art infrastructure, and tax free environment.'

'With Dubai Investments Industries as our strategic partner, we are confident that this production facility will be able to meet the growing demand for our products in the region,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service