ISLAMABAD, Sept 18: A Saudi investment company is willing to invest up to $1 billion in energy, automobile, hotel and construction industries in the next five years.

Al-Qarnain Group chief Eyad Al-Baaj held a meeting with Chairman of Board of Investment, Saleem H. Mandviwalla here on Tuesday to discuss investment opportunities in various sectors of mutual interests of both Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. The group plans to invest $400 million in the first couple of years and later aims to enhance the level of investment up to $1 billion The group’s first investment in Pakistan will be in the form of a joint venture with a Pakistan cement company, ‘Dandore’. The current capacity of Dandore is 350 tons a day which will be enhanced up to 7500 tons a day as a result of the joint venture, said the group’s head.

Al-Baaj informed Mandviwalla that his group was aware of the energy crisis in the Pakistan and was interested in constructing power plants having production capacity of 150MW to 200MW.

To overcome the energy shortfall, the group is also interested in the production of solar panels, installation and back-up services to the consumer, he further explained.

Being one of the biggest construction companies of Saudi Arabia, the group also submitted a proposal to the BOI for the construction of low-cost housing schemes in Pakistan.

It also showed interest to install a state-of-the-art assembly plant for heavy trucks and busses with a comprehensive license from Belarus.