- Rolls Royce signs $300 million deal with Middle East Airlines
to provide engines and support to new fleet of aircraft
- More than 200 Lebanese contracts open for UK companies to bid
on
- Lebanese PM Saad Hariri to meet with Cabinet Ministers during
visit
Senior Cabinet Ministers, including International Trade Secretary
and International Development
Secretary , will meet with Lebanese PM
Saad Hariri, as he leads a delegation to the inaugural UK-Lebanon
Business Investment Forum in London today.
The event saw a deal signed between Rolls Royce and Middle East
Airlines (MEA), who have announced that the Airbus A330-900 will
be the face of a new fleet of aircraft. The deal will see the
British company providing support for the Trent 7000 engines
which power the Airbus aircraft. The combined value of the
engines and services to Rolls-Royce is approximately $300
million.
The economic relationship between UK and Lebanon is growing
stronger, with a range of significant opportunities opening up
for British companies in recent months. Lebanon’s $23bn Capital
Investment Programme, with more than 200 projects in transport,
power-generation and water supply is open for UK companies to bid
on.
Foreign Secretary said:
This is great news for British business – and the largest
UK-Lebanon trade deal in recent history demonstrates the
strength of our ties.
Our relationship with Lebanon is hugely important – covering
security, the economy and aid to support it with its refugee
crisis – and today’s Forum is a vital moment to support Lebanon
and celebrate our strong trade and investment links. A stable
and prosperous Lebanon is vital for the wider security and
stability of the Middle East.
International Trade Secretary said:
Today’s Forum comes as the UK looks to broaden its trading
relationships around the world, as we take control of our
independent trade policy for the first time in 40 years.
I’m delighted to see so many opportunities for British
businesses in Lebanon, and my international economic department
stands ready to assist any business that wants to expand or
start their export operation to the country with strong package
of support.
Prime Minister Designate of Lebanon Saad Hariri said:
I look forward to the opportunity of discussing our ambitious
reform and capital investment program with leaders of the UK
business community.
This program entails a large participation by the private
sector, and I hope today’s agreement between MEA and Rolls
Royce opens the way for an increase in partnership between our
two countries.
The relationship between the UK and Lebanon has never been
stronger. British companies have supported infrastructure
development in the country, the UK has provided assistance to the
Lebanese Armed Forces and investment to help create jobs. Total
trade between the countries currently stands at £586m a year,
with British exports making up the vast majority of this.
There is already a thriving UK business scene in Lebanon. The
Port of Beirut is the busiest port in the Eastern Mediterranean
thanks to the Beirut Container Terminal Consortium, a joint
venture with Mersey Docks and Harbour UK. And, more Jaguars and
Land Rovers are sold per head in the country than anywhere else
in the world.
Today’s event aims to develop this relationship further in the
context of transitioning to a new bilateral agreement with
Lebanon as the UK leaves the European Union. Speakers include FCO
Middle East Minister , and Her Majesty’s Trade
Commissioner Simon Penney.
Prime Minister Hariri and the Lebanese delegation will meet with
the DIT and DFID Secretaries of State and HRH the Prince of
Wales, making this the most senior bilateral interaction in
recent years.
Further Info:
- Just last month we welcomed the launch of a unique
partnership between the UK and Lebanon: the new London Stock
Exchange Group’ ELITE programme for helping Lebanese businesses
attract global investors.
- The Forum will focus on elaborating the Government of
Lebanon’s Vision for Stabilisation, Growth and Employment,
announced at the CEDRE conference in Paris earlier this year.
- The UK welcomes the recommitment to this CEDRE economic
reform vision, with its focus on improving the ease of doing
business, tackling corruption, reforming the electricity sector
and putting the country on a sustainable fiscal path
