The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Croatia woos Indian companies to invest

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Saturday, Jan 06, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Croatia woos Indian companies to invest

Special Correspondent

Official sees scope for cooperation in shipping, tourism A double taxation avoidance agreement between the countries is on the anvil.

CHENNAI: Shipping can be one of the important areas of economic cooperation between India and Croatia, Boris Suran, First Secretary-Economic and Culture in the Embassy of Croatia, has said.

Addressing a meeting organised here on Friday by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), he said Croatia was in the process of privatising five state-owned shipbuilding facilities. Shipbuilding was one of the priority areas of the Central European nation's economy. It was in the process of restructuring the industry.

This could open up opportunities for Indian companies to form joint ventures.

Apart from bidding for them, the companies could also explore the possibility of technical collaboration in the field of shipbuilding with Croatian firms.

There was also scope for cooperation in the fields of tourism -- Croatia is also known as Mediterranean Switzerland -- information technology and biotechnology.

Website

For attracting more investment and making it easier for investors, Croatia was trying to create a more efficient investment climate. Details about the investment regime were available on the www.hitro.hr website.

The benefits

The benefits available to investors in Croatia included free transfer of profit and the invested capital, tax incentives, real estate ownership and equal rights for foreign and domestic investors.

Fifteen free zones for industries were available in Croatia, which were exempt from customs duties and value-added tax and there was no profit tax on the returns from investment in infrastructure projects.

A double taxation avoidance agreement between India and Croatia was on the anvil, he said.

Interactive session

Chairman and managing director of Digicom India R. Ramamurthy, who chaired the interactive session, highlighted the business opportunities available for Indian companies, particularly the small and medium enterprises, in Croatia.

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