Dutch companies grab opportunities of Belt & Road Initiative
October 2, 2018 Category Foreign investment, Weekly
DSM’s Managing Board, right, Mr. Dimitri De Vreeze
Dutch companies are flexing their muscles to grab trade and commerce opportunities in economies within the regions covered by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and build upon the country’s reputation as a pioneer of links between Europe and Asia, the China Daily reports. The flurry of activity follows the state visit of Dutch King Willem-Alexander to China in February, during which he praised the BRI. The BRI seeks to improve connectivity of infrastructure, trade, ideas and knowledge among participating economies.
“We are enthusiastic about the BRI, as this vision will foster better healthcare for people in all the countries along this trade route, and that is coherent with Philips’ vision,” said Frans van Houten, Chief Executive Officer of Philips. DSM, another Dutch company getting involved, uses its position in the field of life and material sciences to help encourage environmentally sustainable infrastructure. “We want to help to make the BRI green,” said Dimitri de Vreeze, Member of DSM’s Managing Board of Directors. He added that DSM will focus on supplying its clean coating material for the containers used for trade in Belt and Road economies, and supply crucial technology to improve the efficiency of electric cars and solar panels that will be sold in economies involved in the BRI. Last week a delegation from China led by officials from the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) completed a three-day visit to Amsterdam, Maastricht, Eindhoven and Heerlen. The delegation was mainly comprized of Chinese clean energy and technology companies and PhD students.
“We are trying to make a connection, paving the way for future partnerships,” said Li Xinyu, Director General of the Research Center for People-to-People Diplomacy of the CPAFFC. Gao Ya, a PhD student of critical care medicine at Xian Jiaotong University, said the visit to Philips opened her eyes to world leading medical technology, which she hopes she can bring back to China’s medical industry and hospitals. Luo Shichuan, Co-founder of PopuMusic, a Beijing-based maker of artificial intelligence music instruments, said the visits to Philips and DSM inspired him to consider sourcing environmental-friendly material for the company’s music instruments. Currently, the Netherlands is China’s third-largest trading partner in the European Union.
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