Sao Paulo/Munich – German electro-technology giant, Siemens announced plans on Wednesday to invest some 1 billion euros (1.2 billion dollars) to expand its operations in Brazil, covering electrification, automation and digitalization efforts.
The company said it had signed a letter of intent with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency for the investment plans.
“The initiative sketched out in the agreement has the potential over the next five years to give a boost to a sustained economic upswing in Brazil,” the Siemens announcement said.
The projects foreseen will strengthen Brazil’s infrastructure in the energy, traffic and health sectors, it said.
The goal is to boost the economy’s competitiveness through greater productivity, which is based on digitalization and improved energy efficiency.
Siemens also aimed to promote the exchange of knowledge with software licences for universities and through special training offers.
After the 2015-16 recession, when the economy slumped by a total of 7 per cent – accompanied by a severe political crisis – Brazil is growing again.
Given that Siemens invested around 1 billion euros over the previous 15 years in Brazil, the new investment plans represent a tripling of investments for the next five-year period.
The country, with the largest economy in Latin America and a population of over 200 million, holds great potential, Siemens noted.