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Interview with Australian Ambassador David Ritchie in Specchio Economico:

DAVID RITCHIE: AUSTRALIA INVITES ITALIAN COMPANIES TO INVEST IN ITS FUTURE

by
FRANCESCO REA

Australia is growing strongly, needs major infrastructure, from motorways to railways, and is seeking investors and hi-tech companies to realise the country’s future thanks to their physical presence and innovation. If they are from Italy, to which Australia is closely tied, all the better.

When the Australian Ambassador in Italy, David Ritchie, says that the last visit by the Italian Foreign Minister to his country dates back to 2001, that of the President of the Republic to 1998, and that the only possible reply as to when our country’s Prime Minister has visited is «never», his clearly perplexed expression is understandable. «Italy and Australia are friends, we have an excellent relationship, also thanks to the large Italian community in Australia, but there is not a similarly solid trade and investment relationship. There is no lack of companies on the ground; there are important companies, Ferrero, Parmalat, Luxottica, Lottomatica, Eni, Iveco, Ansaldo etc. However, a lot of business is simple trade with a market which is still to be discovered and which is on the edge of an area, the Pacific, which includes, above all, China».

The Ambassador goes on: «What we would like Italian companies to understand is that our country needs major infrastructure, from motorways to railways. We want to invest in infrastructure for our future and we want to entrust its realisation to the most innovative and technologically advanced companies, such as those in Italy». The Ambassador highlights the prospects for a young country, consisting of just 22 million inhabitants in a country almost the size of Europe.

His invitation is directed to all the countries in Europe. Ritchie is a senior official at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and a Deputy Secretary, a position he was appointed to in 2001. He was an adviser on international relations for the then Prime Minister and filled various positions in the International Division of the Prime Minister’s Office. He was Ambassador in Indonesia and before that served in Nairobi, Berlin and Bonn. After the attack on the Australian Embassy in Jakarta in September 2004, he was awarded the Order of Australia for his contribution to combating terrorism in South East Asia. He has an honours degree from the University of Queensland and he speaks Italian and German.

Q. What is Australia’s status in political and economic terms and what are relations like with Italy?

A. Australia is a politically stable country with a solid economy which is the thirteenth biggest worldwide. We are one of the fastest growing countries in the OECD. In 2010 our gross domestic product rose by 3.4%, the third best performance of countries in the Pacific. Inflation has fallen further and now stands at 2.7% and unemployment is 5.1%, a very low figure if you consider that the figure includes the consequences on everyday life of the recent natural disasters. Internationally Australia has significant levels of import and export, and has solid economic ties with the United States, China and Japan; it’s reliable in both political and economic terms. There are several good reasons to invest in our country, and that is why we are telling Italy, France, Germany, etc., to invest in Australia. We have excellent relations with Italy, we are very close. Many Australians spend their holidays in Italy.

Q. And do Italians go to Australia?

A. Yes, but they don’t go in the same numbers, and that is not because of any shortage of travel connections. Numerous airlines offer connections, from Cathay Pacific to Singapore Airlines. The connection with Malpensa airport in Milan will feed the sports centre which we will open soon near Varese for Australian athletes competing in Europe. We have a lot of contacts with Italy, through the companies that I mentioned, but also our investments in your Regions. So there is no lack of exchange, which can also happen at city level: Milan is twinned with Melbourne for example, and the electronic ticketing system of ATAC and COTRAL is provided by the Australian company Vix-Erg.

Q. So what’s missing to complete this union?

A. There is no common investment policy, a shared strategy between our countries and between our companies to unite our mutual interests. We have a great need for infrastructure, and our Government has set aside several billion Australian dollars for its realisation; we hope that Italian companies take part in the tender competitions, as did the consortium of which Ghella was part, and which won the tender to build the tunnel for the Northern Link in Brisbane.

Q. Will our companies be discouraged by the long distance?

A. I don’t believe that they are put off by the distance to China and India. I think what is missing is knowledge on the part of Italian companies on how to invest in Australia; as for the work to be done, it is an investment similar to that undertaken in China, since it enables the presence of Italian industry in the whole area. Australia is a country which is growing and which intends to do so in the best way possible, attracting the best companies from around the globe in terms of quality and innovation, such as Italian companies.

Q. What is the situation in relation to the natural disasters that have struck Australia?

A. It is still very difficult and it will take time, despite the Government’s prompt action, to get back to normal and for those affected to return to their everyday lives. It is not the first time that such powerful natural events have occurred in Australia, but some very particular factors have all come together. The tremendous floods which hit Queensland were followed by the biggest cyclone in Australia’s history which affected an area equivalent to France, Germany and Italy taken all together. The Government has set aside over 5 and a half billion Australian dollars. I appreciate the solidarity the whole world has shown us, and in particular from Italians who have been very generous. Queensland, in particular, is an area with a large population of Italian origin who moved there from the town of Conzano to work cutting sugar cane. When faced with these disasters it is necessary to look forward with optimism: our economy is solid, it can get going again, and the reconstruction will be a new opportunity for growth and development, a potential opportunity for Italian companies.

Q. What are Australia’s energy resources and what are you investing in?

A. First I must say that Australia, despite being the biggest global producer of uranium which it exports to many countries which have decided to develop nuclear energy, has not taken the same route. Since the land is resource rich, it has preferred to invest, and invest a lot, in clean coal, solar and wind energy, as well as in the capture and storage of CO2 from the use of fossil fuels. From an energy viewpoint we are self-sufficient. The only energy we import is oil, but we have an energy trade surplus.

Q. A great opportunity is the SKA - Square Kilometre Array - project, for which Australia is in the running with South Africa. What is it?

A. The SKA project has important scientific objectives. It involves the installation of 1,500 radio telescopes in an area with a 1,000 kilometre diameter. All the telescopes are linked which makes it the biggest telescope ever designed. It is capable of exploring space in a way that has never been done before, and it will provide answers to questions on the creation of the cosmos. It is a project which has science as its ultimate aim, and which involves the whole global scientific community, but it is also of enormous technological importance. It is also an important project in economic terms, and is worth two and a half billion euro. Our country, together with New Zealand, has put itself forward to host this great scientific project and has made an agreement with Italy. The decision on the location of the SKA project will be taken by the end of next year.

Q. The Italian Government has put forward its own candidacy to host the SKA’s project office. What do you think about that?

A. That will be subsequent to the decision on the location for the project. There are many partners in this important project and so it will be a joint decision; Rome’s candidacy will have to have the backing of most of the participants. It is a valid idea, but it is still early to talk about it.

Q. Why was Gavirate, in the Province of Varese, chosen to house the Australian «citadel» in Italy, where Australian athletes competing in Europe can train, and which was opened by no less a person than your Minister for Sport?

A. It’s a location which is ideal for the needs of our cyclists and rowers, as it is near a lake and has excellent roads for cycling. Thanks to an agreement with the Province of Varese and a joint investment, a sports centre has been built which will be the base for our athletes competing in Europe. Our Sports Federation chose that area some years ago; the decision to create a structure there was thus a consequence of that and was made possible by the Province’s agreement. In addition, from a logistical viewpoint, it is well connected with Malpensa airport, which in its turn has direct connections with Australia.