BrahMos set to export missiles

Indian defence industry sees good opportunities for exports to the South East Asian and Gulf countries where economic slowdowns have added to budgetary constraints in acquiring viable, cost-effective and reliable solutions.

Taking on such opportunities, the India Russia Joint Venture, BrahMos, is close to export its first batch of missiles this year to a South East Asian country.

“A number of South East Asian countries are ready to buy our missiles,” said Commodore SK Iyer, Chief General Manager for HR at BrahMos Aerospace on 15 May 2019.

“It will be our first export and we have received increasing interests in the missiles form the Gulf countries,” said Iyer at the IMDEX Asia 2019, an international maritime conference and exhibition held 14-16 May in Singapore.

The first missile export contract awaits a government to government approval, said Iyer, anticipating a deal in the coming months.

BrahMos produces over 100 missiles a year and has capacity to meet exports, he said.

BrahMos and L&T Defence of Larsen & Toubro Ltd are showcasing a wide range of defence industry products at the IMDEX for the South East Asian markets.

L&T Defence is also presenting a range of products at the IMDEX 2019 for the South East Asian markets.

Noting a significant change in market trends, industry observers said developing economies in the Middle East, South East Asia and South America were looking for viable, cost effective and reliable solutions.

They added that some of these small economies are looking for renewals of older assets through platform upgrades with latest technologies.

Martyn Allen, regional director for Asia at the UK-based QinetiQ, sees budgetary constraints on defence procurement leading to life-span extension of older assets.

QinetiQ, with partners in India and a recently opened regional office in Kuala Lumpur, looks forward to offer services such as auditing older assets and help refurbishments and upgrades.

Export opportunities through collaboration with Indian defence industry were underlined by Captain Nick Macdonald-Robinson, a senior naval advisor at the Defence & Security Organisation of the UK Department of International Trade.

British companies are already establishing relationship with Indian shipyards which have a vast number of architects and huge amount of experience, he noted.

He pointed out that the large-scale expertise in Indian yards were not only involved in building indigenous designs but, for example, taking products from their India-Russia joint venture into the export markets.

More than 236 defence companies participated in the IMDEX 2019 exhibition.

Over 10,500 delegates and trade visitors attended the event, joined by 23 warships from 30 countries after conducting multilateral regional maritime exercises.

Over 400 delegates from the naval defence sector attended the International Maritime Security Conference on “Safe and Secure Seas: Promoting Mutual Securities in our Maritime Commons.” fiinews.com