MBDA eyes Spanish expansion
MBDA has said that transitioning into Spain is an ‘important objective’ for the European company as it celebrated a 7% profit increase in 2010.
Speaking at a press conference on 16 March, the missile company’s CEO, Antoine Bouvier, said Spain is ‘to become step-by-step a domestic country for MBDA’.
The Anglo-French company already has industrial facilities in France, Germany, Italy and the UK, and an office was established in Madrid in 2010.
Despite ‘huge pressure’ on the defence budget, the Spanish Government still decided to sign MBDA’s Meteor Operation contract in 2010, to the delight of Bouvier.
While stating that each country has its own regulatory environment and that each defence budget is ‘under pressure’, Bouvier described missile defence as an ‘important subject’ on the military agenda.
Julian Whitehead, chief financial officer of MBDA, said that in 2010 the company achieved a turnover of €2.8 billion, which represented an overall increase in its profits of 8%, which adjusted to an underlined 7% compared to 2009 once exchange rates were considered.
This was ‘driven to a large extent by increased delivery on exports’, which rose from 29% to 32%, according to Whitehead.
The company delivered more than 10% return on sales, which signifies the ninth year in which its sales have increased.
However, the ‘frustration’ with the results was that export orders dropped from some 50% in 2009 to 31% in 2010. Whitehead said this was due to a number of opportunities having arisen in 2010, which continue, but had yet to be secured.
The company hopes that 2011 will redress the balance, and argued that the ‘financials remain strong’.
MBDA is also looking outside of Europe to Brazil, India, and UAE. Bouvier acknowledged that it will take some time, but said it aims to step-by-step grow its presence in the US.
He added that MBDA is ‘expecting from 2011 some more tangible results in our US strategy’.
Whitehead commented that the US Department of Defense is a customer of MBDA, but at present not a major one.
The company marks its tenth anniversary at the end of 2011, and Bouvier said it wants to celebrate it with ‘flying colours’ with a growth of 40-50%.
You may also like
More from Defence Notes
-
![Israel defence ministry pushes ambitious spending plans for tanks, drones and KC-46 aircraft]()
Israel defence ministry pushes ambitious spending plans for tanks, drones and KC-46 aircraft
The procurement and acceleration production plans – some of which still await approval – across the air and land domains will aim to strengthen the operational needs of the Israel Defense Forces.
-
![US reforms its defence acquisition system to focus on commercial capabilities]()
US reforms its defence acquisition system to focus on commercial capabilities
This shift is planned to accelerate the procurement and fielding of capabilities. As part of this strategy, the US also intends modernise its regulations in an attempt to change its bureaucratic and risk-averse culture.
-
![Australia’s Exercise Talisman Sabre concludes after a series of firsts]()
Australia’s Exercise Talisman Sabre concludes after a series of firsts
More than 40,000 military personnel from 19 participating nations took part in the 11th iteration of the biennial Exercise Talisman Sabre multi-domain event which was held across Australia and in Papua New Guinea.
-
![US Africa Command targets logistic solutions]()
US Africa Command targets logistic solutions
AFRICOM is seeking IT systems and supply chain management solutions to enhance interoperability and standardise logistical processes in its area of responsibility.
-
![Rheinmetall sales up by almost a quarter on wave of German spending]()
Rheinmetall sales up by almost a quarter on wave of German spending
Germany’s Rheinmetall released its 1H 2025 results on 7 August, continuing the strong growth of recent years. A particular highlight of the result’s presentation was the Skyranger air defence system for which the company is predicting sales of about US$8.2 billion from the German Government before the end of the year.
-
![Defence companies continue to ride procurement wave]()
Defence companies continue to ride procurement wave
Vehicle and technology companies are reporting substantial growth compared to the first half of 2024. Italy’s Fincantieri saw revenues jump 24% for the first half of the year compared to 2024 and Thales up 6.8% for the same period. General Dynamics reported second quarter revenue growth of 8.9% for the second quarter compared to last year and MilDef reported organic order intake growth of 58%.
