Under the agreements, the initial investment by the regional headquarters will be $20 million, with additional investments planned based on the scale and progress of the seawater desalination project.

Metito will also collaborate with Xizhong Island Petrochemical Park to construct its industrial water, seawater desalination, and supporting pipeline projects. The total investment is about 1.2 billion yuan ($165 million).

"The projects are expected to significantly boost infrastructure construction on Changxing Island," said Zhao Dong, head of the Dalian Changxing Island Economic and Technological Development Zone.

Zhao highlighted the similarities between Changxing Island and Singapore's Jurong in terms of resource endowment, industrial structure and geographical environment.

As one of the seven major petrochemical industry bases in China, Changxing Island is moving to establish a world-class green petrochemical industry base, necessitating top-tier companies and suppliers, said Zhao.

Rami Ghandour, co-CEO of Metito, emphasized the strategic importance of the seawater desalination project on Xizhong Island Petrochemical Park as a new starting point for the group's entry into the Chinese market.

Ghandour said Metito is committed to making it a benchmark project for its expansion in China and strengthening ties between UAE enterprises and Dalian's economic and trade networks.

He praised Changxing Island's achievements in developing a huge green petrochemical industry base and acknowledged Dalian's remarkable achievements in economic and social development, which instills confidence in enterprises choosing to invest in the city.

The high level of attention paid by Dalian and Changxing Island to project cooperation was deeply felt during his visit, he said.

Xiong Maoping, Party chief of Dalian, expressed optimism about Metito's role in fostering deeper economic, cultural and tourism cooperation.

While meeting with Ghandour, he expressed hope that Metito will actively help more high-quality enterprises invest in Dalian and facilitate more products and technologies from Dalian to enter the Middle East region.

Dalian boasts a strategic location, robust industrial foundation, efficient shipping and logistics, notable advantages in science and technology innovation and a sustainable urban ecosystem, said Xiong.

The city will continue to improve its business environment, providing better services and conditions for various enterprises, including Metito, to invest and thrive in Dalian, he said.