Ministry of Economics and Technology of Federa : The United Arab Emirates and Germany Cooperate on Energy Policy

Joint press release

2017-1-16

H.E. Rainer Baake, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy of the Federal Republic of Germany, and H.E. Suhail Mohamed Faraj Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy of United Arab Emirates (UAE), have signed a Joint Declaration of Intent on cooperation on the fields of energy between the United Arab Emirates and Germany.

The official signing took place during the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi, and was followed by the first meeting of the High Level Steering Group which adopted a work programme for the first year of the Energy Partnership. It includes scientific exchange, governmental and expert workshops, industry meetings and mutual delegation visits. To strengthen the cooperation in the energy sector between the two countries, Germany and the UAE will cooperate on issues such as frameworks for renewable energy technologies, energy efficiency, the development of the electricity market and research and development.

The same afternoon, a public expert and industry workshop on the countries' energy strategies and on system integration of renewable energies took place. It highlighted the potential for cooperation between the two countries, in particular between small medium-sized enterprises.

H.E Suhail Mohammed Al Mazroui said: 'We aim through this collaboration activating strategic partnerships niche between the two countries in the energy field by the joint team work, and benefit from the experiences, strengthening the significant objectives of the UAE Energy Strategy 2050, which focuses on the implementation of innovative initiatives, finding solutions integrated with energy systems, and supports paths of research, development and innovation to provide sustainable energy.'

State Secretary Baake said: 'The governments of our two countries are determined to enhance bilateral dialogue and practical cooperation in the energy sector in order to maximize the benefits of, in particular, renewable energies and energy efficiency for both our economies, the population in our countries and the environment. With a view to the ambitious targets of the Paris Agreement we would like to work hand in hand to promote investments in energy efficiency and the deployment of renewable energies to create win-win situations for both sides.'

The UAE are one of the top oil producing countries of the world but also strive to be a leader in low emission technologies. Germany is one of the world's first countries to pursue an energy transition towards the deployment of more renewable energies in the power, heating and cooling as well as in the transport sector and to foster energy efficiency.

The text of the Joint Declaration of Intent can be found here (PDF: 61 KB).

More information on the current German energy policy can be found in the Newsletter Newsletter 'Energiewende direkt' in English (published every fortnight).