More than 60 Portuguese firms expected to enter Saudi market this year – Portugal Resident

More than 60 Portuguese companies are expected to be licensed to operate in Saudi Arabia by the end of this year as the two countries step up efforts to turn growing business interest into actual investment.

The forecast comes from Alwalid Albaltan, chairman of the Saudi Arabia-Portugal Business Council (SPBC), who is leading a business mission to Portugal focused particularly on healthcare and technology.

The delegation includes members of the council — which represents more than 70 Saudi private-sector businesses — as well as the head of the Federation of Saudi Chambers of Commerce.

“Relations between Saudi Arabia and Portugal have become more diversified,” Albaltan tells Lusa. “The SPBC is committed to transforming Saudi interest in Portugal into concrete investment.”

The ambition is certainly broad. Technology, industry, energy, tourism, healthcare, logistics, property, construction and entrepreneurship are all being explored, although healthcare is taking centre stage during the current visit.

Saudi interest ranges from digital health and artificial intelligence used in clinical settings to hospital management systems, pharmaceuticals, biomedical research and healthcare provision.

Among the Portuguese companies being showcased are DigestAid, which uses artificial intelligence in digestive diagnostics, and Ciberbit and ITGest, developers of hospital information and management systems. 

The delegation is also looking at private hospitals, biotechnology and nanotechnology.

According to Albaltan, Saudi Arabia’s rapid economic transformation has created demand for overseas partners with proven technology and the ability to deliver projects at scale.

“We have found in Portugal an ecosystem with particularly interesting expertise in these areas, including companies with international experience and solutions already tested in other markets,” he said.

The traffic is not all one way. Over the past 14 months, 52 Portuguese companies and organisations have travelled to Saudi Arabia through official delegations, trade fairs and conferences. The SPBC now expects more than 60 Portuguese businesses to be licensed in the kingdom by the end of 2026.

Some are already drawing up longer-term plans. Pharmaceutical company Tecnimede, which recently met Albaltan, envisages establishing direct operations in Saudi Arabia by 2028.

Meanwhile, the council is seeking Saudi investment in Portugal, particularly in property, construction, artificial intelligence, tourism and renewable energy.

Albaltan described Portugal as “a diamond in Europe” that has yet to attract the level of Middle Eastern investment it deserves.

Contacts are also developing beyond national government and large corporations. A partnership between Vila Nova de Gaia and the municipality of Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province is intended to attract investors for urban and infrastructure projects, exchange expertise and support public-private partnerships.

Tourism is another major target. During the visit, the Saudi delegation is due to meet the Portuguese minister responsible for Tourism, Trade and Services, as well as the president of Turismo de Portugal, to discuss investment and opportunities in the hospitality sector.

For Albaltan, the council’s task is now to ensure that the flurry of delegations, meetings and declarations produces something tangible.

“Our role is precisely to ensure that this interest increasingly translates into investment and concrete projects in both markets,” he said.

Source material: LUSA