More than 150 companies from the Gulf region will participate in the GCC Europe Expo on November 12-13 in London as part of a bilateral trade and investment platform between the GCC, Europe and the UK.

The thriving economies of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE (Dubai, Abu Dhabi) provide outstanding business opportunities and advantages for traders, all of which will be showcased at the free-to-attend exhibition and speaker programme at London's Olympia II Exhibition Hall.

GCC Europe Expo also helps forge thousands of new commercial relationships between EU and GCC businesses, said a statement.

Also featured will be specific European and GCC Country Regional Zones over both floors of the exhibition halls.

This is the first major event of its kind since the GCC and Britain exhibition in 1994, which also took place at Olympia and was attended by the former UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

The Duke of Gloucester will open next month's expo. More than 200 invited VIPs including all the Arab ambassadors to Britain are expected to attend the opening ceremony.

Speakers at the ceremony include: Abdul Rahman Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Secretary General of GCC Chambers; Dr Essam Fakru, President of GCC Chambers; Pierre Simon, head of EuroChambres; Dr Afnan Al-Shuaiby, Secretary General and Chief Executive, Arab-British Chamber of Commerce; and Abdul Rahim Hassan Naqi, Secretary General, Federation of GCC Chambers.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has recorded a personalised video message to be screened at the ceremony.

Free entry to the specific themes over the two-days include Banking and Islamic Finance, Oil and Gas, New Industries and Technologies, Trade Procedures, Insurance and Reinsurance, Women in Business, Food and Agriculture, Investment and Real Estate, Road Rail and Transport, Environmental Sustainability, Business Law, Information technology, Education Training and Research as well as Gulf country-specific sessions.

Guests at GCC Europe Expo will have the exclusive opportunity to hear key industry representatives speak, all under one roof, over the course of the two days.

Also taking place on the evening of November 12 at The Dorchester hotel is the Gala Dinner, which will be attended by dignitaries from the GCC region, Europe and the UK. The keynote speaker for the evening is Secretary of State for Business, Peter Mandelson. - TradeArabia News Service