With five decades of diplomatic and economic ties, bilateral relations between Germany and the UAE are evolving further, with investments in the energy transition, advanced technology and artificial intelligence driving the new phase of growth.
This comes into focus as President Sheikh Mohamed is set to begin a state visit to Germany on Wednesday aimed at advancing long-standing ties.
The UAE leader will meet German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Chancellor Friedrich Merz to explore efforts to deepen co-operation, with a focus on economic and development sectors.
The high-level talks will address regional and international developments and issues of mutual concern, state news agency Wam reported.
The UAE and Germany enjoy robust relations dating back more than 50 years.
The UAE’s trade with Germany, the world’s third-largest economy and a country that accounts for about a quarter of Europe’s total economic output, has grown exponentially over the past few years.
Last year, Germany’s non-oil bilateral trade with the UAE, the second-largest Arab economy, rose to $15.51 billion, a 14.15 per cent jump from the $13.59 billion recorded at the end of 2024, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. UAE exports to Germany increased by more than 50 per cent, while re-exports from the Emirates climbed more than 17 per cent during the same period.
While the two countries have maintained strong diplomatic relations, economic ties were largely anchored by growth in bilateral trade. Non-oil trade, as well as the exchange of services, still forms the foundation of two-way commercial ties, but investments in the industrial sector and advanced technology have flourished in the past decade.
The exchange of business and government delegations, migration of businesses between the two nations, energy security partnerships and industrial co-operation have also helped strengthen trade and investment ties.
Special envoy visit
In June, Badr Jafar, special envoy of the UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs for business and philanthropy, visited Germany and held more than a dozen meetings with senior executives from some of its largest companies and institutions. The engagements – also attended by Ahmed Alattar, UAE ambassador to Germany – in Dusseldorf and Munich underscored the growing role of private sector partnerships in strengthening economic ties, the ministry said at the time.
Mr Jafar's visit was part of the UAE’s efforts to further strengthen relations with Germany and expand co-operation in sectors including industry, energy, advanced manufacturing, water technology, mobility, digital infrastructure, space, sport, culture and innovation.
Discussions with companies including Airbus Defence and Space, BMW Group, Covestro, Wilo Group, Henkel, energy major RWE, Sefe Energy, trade promotion agency NRW.Global Business, Knorr-Bremse, naval shipbuilder ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, German software companies Nemetschek Group and Allplan, as well as Deutsches Museum, focused on exploring options to expand investment.
Chancellor Merz's visit
Mr Jafar's visit followed a trip by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to the UAE in February, when he held talks with Sheikh Mohamed in Abu Dhabi.
“Today in Abu Dhabi I met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to discuss our nations’ long-standing ties and explore opportunities for enhanced collaboration,” Sheikh Mohamed said in a post on X at the time. “The UAE remains keen to strengthen relations with Germany in line with our shared vision of fostering stability, progress and prosperity for all.”
The two leaders witnessed the signing of agreements to bolster collaboration in the energy sector.
Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and managing director and group chief executive of Adnoc, oversaw the signing of three deals during the working visit of the German leader. That included a strategic collaboration between Adnoc and RWE to explore opportunities for the supply of liquefied natural gas to Germany and European markets.
Masdar and RWE also agreed to identify and pursue investments in battery energy storage systems (BESS) projects in Germany. Covestro also signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi's Fertiglobe and Ta’ziz to explore opportunities in ammonia and sustainable materials sectors.
The deals built on the €14.7 billion ($17 billion) investment to support Covestro’s long-term growth by XRG, Adnoc's international investment arm.
Bigger picture
According to Berlin, the UAE is Germany’s most important economic partner in the six-member Gulf Co-operation Council. The UAE is in advanced discussions with the EU for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Cepa) aimed at deepening trade, investment and co-operation across strategic sectors.
The Emirates has already finalised 38 Cepas since it launched the programme in 2021.
With the scale of Germany’s economy and its overarching role in aggregate European GDP, UAE-Germany business engagement makes the country central to the broader UAE-EU economic relationship.
The UAE, which is home to about 2,000 German companies, is pushing to expand its non-oil economic base as it aims to increase its non-oil foreign trade to $1.089 trillion by 2031.
Many German companies in the UAE use the country as a platform to serve the wider Middle East, Africa and Asia region and a deeper trade relationship between the countries will allow them even greater access to the regional markets.
During the discussions in June dominated by trade and investment, Mr Jafar also explored opportunities for German companies to expand manufacturing, research, development and partnership activity through the Emirates.
Additional channels
The establishment of the UAE–German Business Council in July 2025 added another channel for private sector engagement, particularly across advanced technology, energy, infrastructure and sustainable development.
The energy sector is among the clearest examples of how the relationship between UAE and Germany has advanced over the past decade. The two sides formed bilateral energy partnership in 2017, which was followed by a hydrogen task force in 2021 and the Energy Security and Industry Accelerator in 2022.
Energy security to energy transition
The co-operation between Germany and the UAE has evolved from exports of hydrocarbons alone, to include LNG, low-carbon ammonia, renewable energy, hydrogen, energy efficiency, storage, grid integration and the emerging intersection between energy and AI.
That expanded energy relationship is already bearing fruit.
Germany's 476-megawatt Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm became fully operational in July 2025, with Masdar holding a 49 stake valued at €488 million. Sefe also has a three-year agreement with global Adnoc Gas for 700,000 tonnes of LNG from 2025.
XRG's investment in Covestro in 2025, including a €1.17 billion capital increase, is also an example of UAE investment in Germany's advanced industrial base.
The exchange of investments and expertise flow both ways, with Siemens Energy selected in June to provide advanced turbine technology for Abu Dhabi's 2.6-gigawatt Al Taweelah C power project, which is scheduled to begin commercial operations in the third quarter of 2028.
