Idex 2019: UAE Armed Forces awards Dh7bn contracts on day two

Raytheon of the US clinches the biggest contract of Dh5.73bn

Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., February 18, 2019. INTERNATIONAL DEFENCE EXHIBITION AND CONFERENCE 2019 (IDEX) Day 2-- The Red Arrow 10 Multi-Purpose Missile System by Norinco. Victor Besa/The National

The UAE Armed Forces awarded Dh7 billion in contracts on the second day of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (Idex), with the lion’s share of deals going to international companies.

The Armed Forces, which signed 24 contracts in total, awarded six international companies Dh5.87bn worth of contracts, General Mohammed Al Hassani, Idex spokesman said on Monday.

Local companies won contracts worth Dh1.15bn, he added.

Raytheon of the US clinched a Dh5.73bn contracts related to its Patriot missile systems.

Among the local companies that won deals are the International Golden Group, which was awarded a Dh407.7 million contract and Injazat a Dh395m contract.

On the first day of Idex, the UAE Armed Forces awarded Dh4.97bn in contracts, with the majority of deals also going to international companies.

The Armed Forces, which signed 33 contracts in total, awarded International companies 15 contracts worth Dh3.87bn on day one.

Raytheon won a Patriot missile defence system contract for the UAE Air Force valued at Dh1.3bn and Eos Defence of Australia won a Dh1.16bn contract.

Local companies have won contracts worth Dh1.1bn, Mr Al Hassani said.

Among the local companies that won contracts on day one are International Golden Group, which clinched two contracts with a total value of Dh342.3m. Deena Shipping of the UAE also won a Dh99m deal.

Other companies securing deals include Emirates Shooting Equipment, Bermuda, Knowledge Point and Emirates General Transport.

The value of deals during the five-day event is likely to exceed the Dh19.17bn reached in 2017, Idex organisers said earlier this month.

The biennial event taking place in Abu Dhabi has attracted a record number of exhibitors and participating countries.

The UAE has the biggest pavilion in terms of space, followed by the US, Germany, France, Italy and Saudi Arabia.

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Idex 2019: Big guns on show on day two

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The number of participating countries rose 9 per cent to 62, while the number of exhibitors increased six per cent to 1,310, with international companies accounting for 85 per cent of participants, organisers said earlier this month.

The single biggest space is occupied by the International Golden Group, which is one of 170 local companies taking part in the exhibition.

The event takes place amid an increase in military spending by the hydrocarbon-rich countries in the six-member economic bloc of GCC and the wider Middle East and North African region.

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Sheikh Hazza tours Idex

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Military spending as a share of gross domestic product in the Middle East was 5.2 per cent in 2017, the highest among all regions across the globe, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Saudi Arabia led the increase in military spending in 2017, with a 9.2 per cent uptick, according to a report by the institute. Overall Middle East spending climbed 6.2 per cent in 2017.