CDP’s mission to the Gulf: meetings with investment funds and two agreements in Saudi Arabia

Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Agreements with National Development Fund (NDF) and Federation of Saudi Chambers. The mission, led by the chief executive Dario Scannapieco, took the Cdp group to the main financial and industrial hubs of the Gulf with a cross-sector delegation. The joint presence of CDP and SIMEST, with the support of the Foreign Office and local ambassadors, enabled the group to cover the entire financial spectrum: equity and co-investments, exports and internationalisation, industrial localisation and international cooperation. “With this mission, we have further strengthened our dialogue with some of the key economic and financial players in the Gulf, a region that is increasingly strategic for investment and the international growth of businesses. The two agreements signed in Riyadh and our discussions with the region’s leading investors confirm our commitment to building concrete and lasting partnerships’, commented Scannapieco, ‘capable of generating value for Italia and new opportunities for our production system. CDP intends to continue to act as a platform for the Italian economic system, connecting capital, businesses and development projects, not least thanks to the invaluable support of the Italian diplomatic network.”

In Doha, meetings with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Qatar Development Bank (QDB) and the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) have provided an opportunity to explore opportunities for collaboration in the fields of investment, trade, business support and industrial development, linking Qatari capital with the investment platforms of the CDP and with Italy’s already significant industrial presence in the energy, infrastructure, advanced manufacturing and shipbuilding sectors.

In Abu Dhabi, with meetings with the Mubadala Investment Company, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Lunate, the IMAD Holding Company and Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), the foundations were laid for a lasting relationship between the two economic systems: on the one hand, new opportunities for co-investment; on the other, a stable channel to support the establishment of Italian companies in the Emirates.

In Riyadh, meetings were held with the National Development Fund (NDF), the Federation of Saudi Chambers, SNB Capital, Modon, Tadawul Group, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Saudi Central Bank have provided an opportunity to explore opportunities for collaboration in the fields of investment, industrial development, capital markets and business support. The talks also provided an opportunity to explore potential synergies within the framework of Vision 2030, the Saudi reform plan aimed at diversifying the economy and reducing its dependence on oil, as well as attracting investment and facilitating the participation of Italian companies in the major economic transformation projects currently underway in the country.

In Jeddah, the meeting with the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) enabled the launch of the first operational initiatives provided for under the agreement signed in 2025, with particular reference to development and infrastructure projects in Africa. The visit to King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), one of the country’s main industrial and logistics hubs, provided an opportunity to assess it as a gateway for Italian companies to enter the Saudi market. Finally, the delegation met with the Zahid Group, one of the country’s leading industrial and commercial operators, to explore opportunities for collaboration and industrial development.