Spanish Business Forum
Speech
Sydney
26 June 2009
Introduction
On behalf of the Australian Government, I would like to welcome His Majesty, King Juan Carlos 1, to Sydney.
It is a great honour to have Your Majesty here today in support of this important business forum and we are pleased to be your host for this event.
I also extend a welcome to Silvia Iranzo, Spain's State Secretary of Trade, as well as the visiting Spanish and Australian business delegations and other distinguished guests.
Australia remains a terrific destination for travel, education and investment. Spaniards are increasingly coming to our shores to study, have fun and do business.
The good will and curiosity we feel about our respective nations is mutual.
I note that Baz Luhrman's recent film, Australia, was more popular in Spain than any other European country, even the United Kingdom.
Perhaps our endless summers and dry climate give our two nations a special affinity?
Your Majesty's visit, I'm sure, will go a long way to furthering the commercial ties between our two nations.
Today, I'd like to talk about why Australia is a good place to invest and point out where Spanish and Australian commercial interests intersect.
Trade and Investment Policy
Trade and foreign investment are critical for Australia's $1 trillion national economy and we welcome both, no more so than during the current downturn.
Australia is proud to be a consistent supporter of the Doha Round of the World Trade Organization, and we also have a strong record of regional and bilateral free trade agreements, including one with the United States.
Spanish-Australian Business Ties
Australia's commercial and trade interests intersect with Spain's in several important ways.
Like Spain, Australia is acutely aware of the challenges of climate change, finding renewable energy sources and managing water more efficiently.
Our nations are hot, water is scarce and our environments are fragile and vulnerable to climate change.
Australia, like Spain, therefore places great importance on commercially developing clean energy technologies, such as wind or solar power, and green urban designs for sustainable cities.
We are also seeking more inward foreign investment in these and other sectors, such as infrastructure, including desalination plants, transport and information technology.
Our commercial ties have intersected to the extent that by the end of 2008, according to our Bureau of Statistics, Spain had invested A$6.6 billion in Australia; while Australia had invested A$4.1 billion in Spain.
Many Spanish companies here today have already taken the step of investing here, and we welcome that interest.
Acciona Energy, for example, has invested in the Waubra Wind Farm in my home state of Victoria. It is the biggest wind farm in the Southern Hemisphere, with a generating capacity of 192MW.
Technicas Reunidas, or TR, is involved in developing and operating what will be the biggest desalination project north of Bunbury, in Western Australia.
And let's not forget that Spanish firms like Navantia are also supplying the Australian Defence Force with high-technology military systems.
At Navantia's Ria de Ferrol's shipyards, for example, the platform for Australia's new Air Warfare Destroyers is being designed and partially built before being shipped to the Williamstown shipyards in Melbourne.
Australian firms and products are also making a mark in Spain, especially in building and construction. Spain is Bovis Lend Lease's fourth largest market.
A South Australian business, Petratherm, is set to become the first company to develop a geothermal energy project in Spain, which could supply the large electricity markets in Madrid and Barcelona.
Courtesy of Antonio Gallardo's Australian Kids store in Madrid, many Spanish children are now wearing Australian street and surf wear, as well as sun-protective swimwear.
While a Tasmanian supplier of pure rain water, known as King Island Cloud Juice, has sold his product into Spain, including to Spain's world-renowned restaurant, El Bulli.
I am pleased to say that today, the Water Corporation of Western Australia will sign a contract for a joint venture with two Spanish firms, Tecnicas Reunidas and Valoriza Agua.
We welcome that venture and are pleased His Majesty will be here for the signing of the contract.
Conclusion
So we are delighted that Spanish companies are finding investment opportunities here, and we appreciate Your Majesty's visit to Australia.
The Asia Pacific will be the engine room of the global economy in the 21st century and Australia stands to benefit from this, as will foreign investors.
By investing in Australia, they will get strategic access to Asia's markets through closer proximity and new supply chains.
I'd like to thank the Spanish Trade Commission, the Spanish Institute of Foreign Trade and Austrade for their efforts in organising today's seminar.
Austrade has been active in Spain promoting Australian technologies to Spanish investors in solar energy, water and green building designs.
Spain and Australia are forging stronger economic and investment ties that will benefit both our nations in the years ahead.
Events like today's business forum add momentum to the growth of those ties and I'd like to congratulate His Majesty on the success of his delegation's visit.
Thankyou
ENDS