UAE, Türkiye Discuss Ways to Enhance Strategic Relations, Cooperation and Investment Opportunities in energy, industry, advanced technology, and infrastructure

A UAE delegation, led by His Excellency Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, has concluded a two-day visit to Türkiye that took place from 13-14 July aimed at enhancing cooperation and exploring new areas for future collaboration, especially in the energy, industry and advanced technology sectors.

H.E Al Jaber, who met with Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology, Mustafa Varank was accompanied by His Excellency Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Her Excellency Sarah bint Yousef Al Amiri, Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology, His Excellency Omar Suwaina Al Suwaidi, Undersecretary of MoIAT, Mohammed Saeed AlNeyadi, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Türkiye, Mansour Al Mulla, Managing Director and CEO of EDGE Group, Salem Butti Al Qubaisi, Director General of UAE Space Agency, Mohammed Jameel Al Ramahi, CEO of Masdar, Mohammed Saif Al-Ariani, Acting CEO of ADNOC International, Samia Bouazza, CEO of Multiply Group, Abdullah Al Shamsi, Assistant Under-Secretary for the Industrial Development Sector, and Mansour Al Mansouri, Chief Operating Officer of G42.

The visit also included meetings with senior government and private sectors officials as well as a UAE Türkiye Investment Workshop. Delegates discussed collaboration across the gas, energy infrastructure, renewable energy, healthcare, biotech, agri-tech, defense, logistics, digital communication, e-commerce and financial services sectors.

HE Dr. Al Jaber conveyed the greetings of the UAE’s leadership and people to the government and people of the Republic of Türkiye. He highlighted that the visit is in line with the leadership’s vision and is one of many that will aim to explore the exciting investment opportunities for growth in both nations across a range of priority sectors.

H.E emphasized that the two countries share a clear vision for sustainable economic growth and continue to expand their relations; as highlighted by the visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, to Türkiye at the end of 2021, and the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the UAE in February that resulted in cooperation agreements worth millions of dollars to invest in Türkiye, in addition to agreements and MoUs to boost cooperation across different fields that contribute to enhancing sustainable economic development.

His Excellency said: "Our companies see opportunities in developing gas resources, energy infrastructure and renewable energy; healthcare, biotech and agri-tech; defense, logistics, digital communications, e-commerce and financial services. While we are keen to expand our investments in Türkiye, we also want to drive mutually beneficial partnerships for industrial investment in the UAE.”

His Excellency continued: "In line with the UAE’s Projects of the 50, which include many national strategic projects, we encourage businesses and institutions from both countries to take advantage of this partnership along with the opportunities and incentives offered. Doing so will develop relations in various fields, including energy, industry, and trade, which will contribute to achieving greater sustainable economic growth.”

HE Dr. Sultan Al Jaber invited Turkish companies to invest in the UAE’s industrial sector and benefit from industrial investment opportunities in petrochemicals, metals, pharma, medical equipment, electrical machinery, F&B, agri-tech, defense and space. Recently, the UAE held the Make it in the Emirates Forum, where leading national companies unveiled a set of industrial investment opportunities worth AED110 billion, comprising 300 products across 11 sectors. 

“The UAE is a leader in the energy sector, both conventional and clean, petrochemicals, metals, defense, pharma, and F&B. Cooperation with Türkiye in the energy, industry and advanced technology sectors, among others, indicates a strong commitment to increase joint investments. Our companies see opportunities in developing gas resources, energy infrastructure, renewable energy, healthcare, biotech, agri-tech, defense, logistics, digital communications, and financial services.”

His Excellency Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, said: “The continued development of UAE-Turkiye relations is a direct result of our leadership’s directives to strengthen global strategic partnerships. Our efforts led to our recent Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA) with neighboring countries to enhance trade and economic cooperation and expand investments.”

His Excellency continued: “Our CEPA with Turkiye will bring unique opportunities to enhance bilateral trade and investments, in line with all the UAE’s CEPAs. This visit will help to stimulate joint investments with Turkiye, supporting our common interests. It is in line with both countries’ efforts to boost collaboration, double the volume of non-oil trade, incentivize mutual investments, and advance economic relations.

HE Dr. Thani concluded: “Our economic partnership with Turkiye is deeply rooted. Non-oil trade between the two countries amounted to about AED50.4 billion in 2021, achieving a growth of 54 percent compared to 2020, and an increase of 86 percent compared to 2019. Turkiye accounts for more than three percent of the UAE’s non-oil foreign trade and is our seventh largest trading partner. UAE investments in Turkiye amounted to almost AED18.3 billion by the end 2020, while the value of Turkish investments in the UAE amounted to AED1.1 billion at the end of 2019. The UAE announced a $10 billion investment fund in Turkiye and the signing of 72 cooperation agreements, highlighting this relationship’s positive trajectory.”

Her Excellency Sarah bint Yousef Al Amiri, Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology, said: “Based on the directives of the UAE leadership, UAE-Turkish relations are flourishing across various sectors. Thanks to both leaderships, we are witnessing a transformation of projects in vital sectors including in advanced technology and space.”

Her Excellency added: "In the UAE, we are focused on innovation, the adoption of advanced technology and future proofing as key enablers for economic growth in general and especially in the industrial sector.”

Her Excellency highlighted that: "The signing of the MoU between the UAE Space Agency and the Turkish Space Agency that includes space research and technology and joint studies on suborbital flights and satellite systems, lies at the heart of the UAE’s efforts to build bridges for space exploration. For us in the UAE, international cooperation is key to achieving space aspirations as it provides a mechanism to increase the impact and outcomes of science through knowledge sharing, building R&D capacities, and supporting the deployment of advanced technology in industry. Ultimately, we believe these partnerships will provide mutual economic and social positive impact. Our joint efforts will help to expand the region’s contribution to humanity’s broader space exploration. I would like to take this opportunity to wish Turkiye every success in its lunar mission next year.”

As part of the visit, an agreement was signed between the UAE Space Agency and the Turkish Space Agency to boost collaboration in scientific fields, training, as well as knowledge and experience transfer.

During the UAE Türkiye Investment Workshop, the UAE delegation outlined investment opportunities across the UAE's industrial value chain, with a focus on priority sectors that leverage the use of advanced technologies.

Türkiye representatives gave a detailed explanation of the advantages of investing in the country through the Invest in Türkiye initiative.