Etihad Airways, the second largest carrier of the United Arab Emirates, anticipates surging demand for business travel on its new Seoul-Abu Dhabi route, as the two countries broaden economic ties, its chief executive James Hogan told The Korea Herald.

The company signed a code-sharing agreement Monday with Asiana Airlines, Korea’s second largest, to operate direct flights between the capitals once a day starting Dec. 10.

“We’re very excited about the Korean market,” Hogan, an Australian, said in an interview.

“Both Asiana and Etihad are committed to the highest standards of operational and service excellence. We aim to offer guests from Seoul an extension of the quality they have come to expect with Asiana, as they travel west to Abu Dhabi and beyond.”

With the agreement, customers will have a greater choice and earn miles within each company’s frequent flyer program on the code-shared flights.

The two airlines plan to expand their partnership across Europe, Middle East and Africa, according to Etihad. 

Established in 2003, Etihad has expanded operations to 66 destinations on just about every continent. Seoul is the 65th footprint on its network.

Korean companies are fast expanding their presence in the burgeoning Middle Eastern economy. Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Engineering, GS Engineering & Construction and SK Engineering & Construction have been participating in large-scale development projects in cities like Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

“We’ve already got a strong bridge between Seoul and Abu Dhabi,” Hogan said. “Korean companies have been very successful, and now there are over 5,000 Koreans living and working in Abu Dhabi.”

As of 2009, 43 Korean firms are in operation in the most modernized Middle Eastern city. An additional nine have registered since January, local media reported.

A consortium led by Korea Electric Power Corp. won a $20 billion project in December to build nuclear reactors in the emirates.

Since the agreement inked, the economic relationship is growing even stronger, he said.

“These developments are very exciting for the UAE and will play a key role in the Emirates’ evolution.”

The state-run Korean utility giant also won a $1.5-billion deal this month to build and operate a gas-fired power plant in the UAE along with Japan’s Sumitomo Corp.

“Abu Dhabi is moving away from the energy sector to focus on services, education, medical and tourism,” he said. “We expect increasing trade relations between two countries will lead to growing numbers of business travelers, as well as people from both regions visiting friends and relatives.”

The UAE is the third-largest oil exporter holding about 10 percent of the world’s oil reserves. It provided 14 percent of Korea’s oil imports last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The country is striving to reduce its reliance on the volatile petroleum market and build up new industries to diversify its growth structure.

The oil-rich nation achieved 9.3 percent annual growth on average between 2000 and 2007. However, its growth has slowed because of fluctuating oil prices and the impact of the global financial crisis.

By Shin Hyon-hee (heeshin@heraldcorp.com)