Abu Dhabi, 12/8/2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Brazil's ambassador in the Arab Emirates, Flávio Sapha, reports that investors there are interested in participating in extraction and production activities in Brazil where there are plans to build a new refinery. According to Sapha, good quality Arab light crude is becoming more scarce and they are looking for business opportunities.

One possibility is that the Arabs will import heavy crude from Brazil and use it for industrial purposes (comestics and asphalt, for example).

Sapha points out that the country's principal port, Jabal Ali in Dubai, is a gateway to the rest of the region, from Jordan to Paquistan. Even goods going to US-occupied Iraq are largely transported through the Arab Emirates.

Last year Brazil exported US$300 million in petroleum to the Emirates. Sapha says that could rise to US$400 million this year. "There is a cost-benefit factor that favors Brazil. Ships carry petroleum to Brazil but return empty."

Sapha says that Afghanistan has recently begun importing oil from Brazil. (AB)