Kuwaiti transport company sells stakes in Jordan

The Kuwaiti leading transport company, City Group, signed on Thursday with the Jordanian Government a deal according to which its stake in the Jordanian Autobus, the Comprehensive Multiple Transport Company - CMTC, would be shifted to the Amman Government. The deal is worth USD 10 million, out of the overall investment, valued at USD 20 million. Jordanian Minister of Finance Umayya Toukan, Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply Hatem Halawani and City Group Chairman Yacoub Al-Sharhan signed the accord at a ceremony, attended by the Kuwaiti Ambassador to Jordan, Dr. Hamad Al-Duaij. Minister Toukan said in a statement to KUNA that the deal resolves an issue that has been pending for some time, noting its significance "within framework of brotherly cooperation bonding the Kingdom with the State of Kuwait." Touqan praised the ambassador efforts that led to working out the deal. For his part, Al-Sharhan said the company faced some problems that prompted it to stop investing in the local public transport sector. The Jordanian side agreed to buy the stakes and compensate the company, he explained. Ambassador Al-Duaij, who played a key role in clinching the deal, affirmed the diplomatic mission tasks of looking after Kuwaiti interests and facilitating work of Kuwaiti entrepreneurs in Jordan, where the Kuwaiti investments amount to USD 12 billion. City Group signed with the Jordanian Government, on January 28, an agreement to sell its stake, 51 percent (USD 10 million) of the Jordanian transport company capital.