Saab posts healthy financials for 2021
Saab booked a new Gripen E equipment deal from Sweden in Q4 2021. (Photo: Saab)
In its full-year results presentation on 11 February, Saab described 11% sales growth in 2021 to SEK39.15 billion ($4.20 billion), helping net profits to more than double to SEK2.89 billion.
Order bookings grew by 3% to a value of SEK43.57 billion in 2021, while the order backlog as at 31 December 2021 reached SEK105.18 billion (up by 5%).
‘In 2021, we strengthened our platform for future growth by continuing to grow our order intake,’ said Micael Johansson, Saab president and CEO, adding that the defence and aerospace company expects organic sales growth of 5% in 2022.
Orders booked in Q4 2021, for instance, included a new Gripen E equipment contract for Sweden, multiple Carl-Gustaf orders including the next-generation round for Sweden, and a launch contract for the new G1X air defence radar.
However, sales fell in Q4 as the Aeronautics and Kockums businesses within Saab reported growth while Dynamics and Surveillance had lower sales.
Johansson sounded a note of caution around a ‘continued risk’ of supply chain shortages in 2022. He noted that headwinds related to the global COVID-19 pandemic remain ‘to some extent’, although Saab has ‘largely mitigated the impact on our business’.
More from Defence Notes
-
Orchestrating operational readiness across every defence domain
Are all systems ready for the next mission? Have upgrades been applied? Are all assets aligned to deploy together, on time and fully prepared? In modern defence operations, readiness is no longer measured platform by platform. It is measured by how well people, assets, data and decisions move together — across land, sea and air.
-
How deepening AI usage can boost efficiency and maximise effects for forces
Saab has outlined how it is using artificial intelligence to make training more like electronic gaming, while the UK’s Power Size Technologies is applying the same technology to better evaluate and design vehicle capability, moving AI-enabled innovation further upstream from the frontline.
-
From systems integrator to multi-domain solutions provider (video)
Philipp von Brandenstein, Head of Corporate Communications at Rheinmetall, explains how Eurosatory 2026 marked a new stage in the company's evolution.
-
US Pentagon pushes for major reform of defence acquisition system
The US Department of Defense has requested new contracting authorities from Congress, using the Army's MV-75 Cheyenne programme to demonstrate how competition, digital engineering and closer industry collaboration could accelerate acquisitions.