Rafael-VW talks continue despite Qatari opposition &#8211; report

Rafael-VW talks continue despite Qatari opposition – report

Smart solutions are being sought to turn the Volkswagen plant in Osnabrück into a Rafael plant to produce trucks for Iron Dome, German business magazine ‘WirschaftsWoche” reports.

Negotiations to turn the Volkswagen plant in Osnabrück, Germany, into a Rafael plant to produce trucks and other parts for the Iron Dome air defense system have been making headlines in Germany in recent weeks. The German business magazine “WirschaftsWoche” reported this morning that “negotiations are still ongoing” and that the last word has not been said about the deal, after the Qatar Investment Fund expressed its opposition to it and seemingly torpedoed it.

Qatar puts spoke in wheels of Rafael-VW deal – report

The fund holds about 17% of the voting rights in the company, but “it is not clear whether its opposition to the deal constitutes an absolute veto,” it said. The Qatar Investment Fund’s mere intervention in the decision has drawn criticism in Germany, especially after its holdings in the shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has become an Israeli security reason to prevent the ZIM acquisition.

The head of the powerful works council at Volkswagen’s Osnabrück plant, which employs about 2,400 workers who are set to be laid off next year, told the magazine that “a smart solution must be found.” According to him, the possibility is that the state of Lower Saxony, which holds about 20% of the shares in Volkswagen as a whole, will acquire most of the holdings in the specific Osnabrück plant, which would pave the way for Rafael’s deal with it. A security expert interviewed by the magazine said that Qatar may “demand” something from the German government in exchange for giving up the veto. “We live in times when difficult agreements have to be made with complicated players,” he told the magazine.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on July 16, 2026.