The Sovereign Missile Alliance (SMA), an incorporated joint venture company backed by founding and sovereign Australian equal shareholders Electro Optic Systems Pty Ltd (EOS) and Nova Systems, has announced its intention to collaborate with Diehl Defence on the Sovereign Guided Weapons Enterprise (the Enterprise). This follows the announcement of the Enterprise in 2021 by the Australian Prime Minister, Minister for Defence, Minister for Defence Industry and the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology. The Enterprise will support missile and guided weapons manufacturing for use across the Australian Defence Force. The SMA, together with EOS and Nova Systems, seeks to be a strategic industry partner and a key contributor to the Enterprise.
Jim McDowell, Group CEO of Nova Systems said, “Nova Systems and EOS are two Australian mid-tier defence entities of scale that are 100% Australian owned and controlled. The Sovereign Missile Alliance welcomes the commitment of Diehl Defence to participate in the Sovereign Guided Weapons Enterprise in key technological areas.”
Helmut Rauch, CEO of Diehl Defence, added: “We are looking forward to intensifying the cooperation with our Australian partners. We will highly appreciate any opportunity to team up as one element within the Sovereign Guided Weapons Enterprise and provide guided missile expertise.”
EOS’ founder and Group CEO, Dr Ben Greene said, “The Sovereign Missile Alliance is dedicated to providing a family of sovereign guided weapons for the defence of Australia. This collaboration with Diehl Defence will bring world leading technology to Australia to enable this development to occur.”
Between them, the SMA will be able to leverage expertise from more than 1,000 Australian employees and annual turnovers of around AUS$500M+ in revenue. Germany-based Diehl Defence is a prime supplier and well-established contractor for guided weapons technology. The proposed cooperation of Diehl Defence with the Enterprise will provide the opportunity for further applications of its guided weapons capabilities, while Australian defence industry will benefit from the transfer of proven technology, which will make Diehl Defence a strong contributor to the SMA and the Enterprise. In response to the SMA’s public announcements, Diehl Defence is confirming its interest and commitment to collaborate with the SMA on a non-exclusive basis. Also, this cooperation will further strengthen the ties between Diehl Defence and Australian defence industry, particularly in its previously announced manufacturing agreement with EOS.
