TUNISIAN MINISTER OF INDUSTRY AND TECHNOLOGY ON

UNCLAS TUNIS 000083 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EEB/IFD/OMA, EEB/EPPD, AND NEA/MAG STATE PASS USTR (BURKHEAD) AND USAID (MCCLOUD) USDOC FOR ITA/MAC/ONE (MASON),ADVOCACY CTR (TABINE),AND CLDP (TEJTEL AND MCMANUS) USDOC PASS USPTO (ADAMS, BROWN, AND MARSHALL) CASABLANCA FOR FCS (KITSON) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EFIN EINV ETRD TS SUBJECT: TUNISIAN MINISTER OF INDUSTRY AND TECHNOLOGY ON COOPERATION WITH THE U.S. Sensitive but unclassified; please protect accordingly. -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (SBU) On January 28, the Ambassador called on Minister of Industry and Technology Mohamed Afif Chelbi, the minister also in charge of energy and small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Chelbi was enthusiastic about the forthcoming memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Ministry of Industry and Technology (MOIT),which will provide a platform for direct contact between Tunisian and American SMEs. The Ambassador raised civil nuclear energy cooperation and also the upcoming trade mission to Tunisia, noting that at least one U.S. company was interested in meeting with the Ministry to discuss trade and investment. Chelbi and the Ambassador also discussed U.S. investment in the energy sector. End summary. -------------- Private Sector and SME Initiatives -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Minister Chelbi was particularly excited about bilateral cooperation on the development of small and medium businesses. He said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had approved a draft MOU for cooperation between the U.S. Small Business Administration, which visited Tunisia in late 2009, and the Agency for Promotion of Industry (API, the SBA equivalent in the MOIT). Chelbi said he envisioned business-to-business contacts between Tunisian and American SMEs and would like to send an API delegation to the United States. He said he would like to raise the profile of Tunisia in the United States, and although the MOIT had already done a Tunisian "roadshow" on the petroleum sector in the United States, other Tunisian industries were unknown to U.S. investors. -------------- New Cooperation on Solar Energy -------------- ¶3. (SBU) The Minister noted five U.S. companies were present in the energy sector in Tunisia, and hoped that number would increase. He asked about opportunities for bilateral cooperation in the solar energy field, and referenced the Tunisia Solar Plan (an ambitious solar energy plan aiming to reduce electricity consumption by 16 percent by 2016 and create at least 40 private-public partnerships in the sector by 2020). The Ambassador extended an invitation to the Minister to participate in a May 2010 conference on electricity in the MENA region organized by the U.S. Trade and Development Agency. This would present an important opportunity for the Tunisian government to liaise with the U.S. private and public sector on solar energy. ¶4. (SBU) In addition, the Ambassador raised the issue of Baker Hughes, a U.S. oil services company currently investing in Tunisia. Baker Hughes is seeking to expand the Tunisia market but is having trouble getting an explosives permit (required for drilling) because it cannot find the correct interlocutor within the GOT who can approve such a permit. The Minister identified the right person within the MOIT who could assist the company (Note: we have since notified Baker Hughes of this information and are working with Mokhtar Hajji, the Ministry's Director of International Cooperation and External Relations, who was present at the meeting. End note). -------------- U.S. Trade Delegation -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The Minister was pleased to hear about a February 15 U.S. Trade Delegation coming to Tunisia as part of the Department of Commerce-led Executive Trade Mission to Algeria and Libya. The Ambassador noted at least one company, Capstone Turbine Corporation, was interested in meeting with the MOIT as its products fit well with some of the GOT initiatives on renewable energy. The Minister said he would gladly assist in arranging such a meeting between MOIT, or even STEG, the state-owned utility. The Embassy is also following up with the Ministry to seek a courtesy call by Raytheon. -------------- Civil Nuclear Cooperation -------------- ¶6. (SBU) The Ambassador also raised the issue of civil nuclear cooperation. In September 2009, the GOT sent the Embassy a diplomatic note requesting "study days" to discuss civil nuclear cooperation. That same month, the Embassy sent a reply noting our willingness to engage on the issue as we had in late 2008 when Ambassador Jackie Wolcott, then-Special Envoy for Nuclear Nonproliferation, visited Tunisia. Chelbi said he shared the nuclear energy portfolio with the Ministry of Education, which covers the research and technical assistance portfolio, and confirmed that the GOT was looking for partners internationally on this issue. He said the GOT was studying the proposals, but did not specify if the GOT was preparing a response to the September diplomatic note. GRAY