Germany has secured one of the largest foreign-investment commitments announced in Europe this year. During the UAE president's state visit, the two governments welcomed a planned €40 billion UAE investment package spanning advanced industry, artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and energy.
The standout number is approximately 1GW of new state-of-the-art data-centre capacity. At that scale, the announcement is not simply a property-development story. It becomes a power, grid, permitting, construction and industrial-supply-chain project.
The 1GW data-centre plan could become the hardest part to execute
Germany has the engineering base, enterprise demand and central-European location to support large-scale digital infrastructure. It also has high electricity costs, slow permitting in some regions and grid bottlenecks that can delay major loads.
That means the investment commitment should be tracked in stages: site selection, power contracts, grid connections, permits, construction and ultimately commissioned compute capacity. The €40 billion figure describes ambition. Execution will determine the economic effect.
Our view: Gulf capital is becoming part of Germany's industrial-policy toolkit
German Business Review's view is that this agreement is strategically important because it combines foreign capital with sectors Germany is explicitly trying to strengthen: AI infrastructure, energy security and advanced industry.
The data-centre component is also a test of whether Germany can convert political support into physical capacity quickly enough. If 1GW is delivered, the project would materially expand Germany's AI infrastructure base. If grid and permitting constraints dominate, the headline commitment will remain mostly financial diplomacy.
| Measure | Announced value | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| UAE investment package | €40bn | Large strategic foreign-investment commitment |
| Data-centre capacity | Approx. 1GW | Potential major addition to German AI infrastructure |
| Business agreements | 29 agreements and MoUs | Shows private-sector breadth |
| Agreement value | More than €9.356bn | Separate commercial pipeline alongside headline package |
| Existing XRG/Covestro investment | Approx. €15bn | Shows existing depth of UAE industrial exposure |
Frequently asked questions
How much has the UAE said it will invest in Germany?
The two governments welcomed a planned UAE investment package totaling €40 billion.
How much data-centre capacity is included?
The joint declaration refers to approximately 1GW of new state-of-the-art data-centre capacity.
Which German companies are involved?
The declaration highlights initiatives involving companies including Covestro and RWE, alongside UAE groups ADNOC and Masdar.