Elbit Wins $150 Million Contract With the Australian Department of Defence

Israeli defense and homeland security manufacturer and contractor Elbit Systems Ltd. announced on Thursday a $150 million contract with the Australian Department of Defence to provide through-life support services to the Australian Defence Force (ADF). As part of the contract, Elbit will service the ADF’s battle management system command and control (BMS C2).

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The five-year contract was awarded through Elbit’s subsidiary, Elbit Systems of Australia Pty Ltd. The contract could be extended for up to seven additional years, Elbit said in a statement.

“The ADF is a strategic partner of Elbit Systems and this contract represents the long-term commitment of Elbit Systems to support the ADF digitization effort,” Yehuda (Udi) Vered, general manager of Elbit Land and C4I, said in a statement. This contract is expected to “significantly enhance and strengthen its local engineering and support capabilities,” Mr. Vered added.

Last week, Elbit announced an $85 million deal to supply electronic warfare and signal intelligence systems to an unnamed European country.

In December, Elbit announced a $74 million, 13-year contract to set up and operate a flight simulator training center for the Israeli Air Force. Also in December, Elbit announced a four-year, $46 million contract with NATO to supply countermeasures self-protection systems to its Airbus A330 tanker fleet.

Established in 1966 and headquartered in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, Elbit and its subsidiaries operate in a variety of military-oriented and technological domains, including communications, aerospace, land and naval systems, surveillance and reconnaissance. Elbit, which is dual-listed on Nasdaq and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, employs around 12,500 people worldwide, with 10,000 based in Israel.

Earlier this month, Calcalist reported that Elbit is in the final stages of negotiating the acquisition of state-owned Israeli arms manufacturer IMI Systems Ltd. (Israeli Military Industries). The report cited two people familiar with the matter, who spoke with Calcalist on conditions of anonymity. The purchase of IMI would strengthen Elbit’s positioning as a competitor to Israeli defense contractors Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. and Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd.

Israeli weapon manufacturers were responsible for 2.1% of the global weapons sales in 2016, valued at $7.9 billion, according to an annual report on the global weapons industry published in December by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Elbit, Israel Aerospace Industries, and Rafael were listed among the world’s 50 largest weapons manufacturers.