GM Defense LLC, a subsidiary of General Motors (GM), and the Tawazun Council signed a collaborative Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) as the first step toward a formal partnership to develop future products in the areas of advanced mobility and power solutions. The MOU was signed at the Tawazun Council Chalet at IDEX 2023 by Shareef Hashim Al Hashmi, CEO of Tawazun Council and Steve duMont, president of GM Defense. The MOU with Tawazun Council is the first partnership for GM Defense in the Middle East and helps the business expand its reach following the 2022 announcement of GM Defense International. GM Defense’s ability to leverage GM’s advanced commercial platforms, world-class manufacturing and global supply chain and advanced electrification technologies enable the company to deliver commercially proven, best value solutions with innovation, speed and flexibility.
“Today’s agreement marks an important, new relationship that further strengthens our nation’s domestic defense industrial base while offering new opportunities for an expanding technology development and supply partnership with GM Defense,” said Shareef Al Hashmi, CEO of Tawazun Council. “Tawazun is uniquely positioned within the region as a resource for operations, production and development for world-class technology companies like GM Defense. Our strong global tie makes us an advantageous partner.”
“Our collaboration with Tawazun Council is an important step in expanding our reach to defense and government customers in the Middle East,” said Steve duMont, GM Defense president. “We are committed to building long-term, lasting relationships in the region and to delivering solutions featuring some of the most advanced, commercially proven technologies that offer reliability and flexibility. With this MOU in place, we can more effectively help our global customers transition to a more electric, autonomous and connected future.”
With the MOU in place, GM Defense — which leverages the proven commercial technologies of its parent company, GM, and the vast battery electric investments made by GM to bring innovation to global defense and government customers — and Tawazun Council — the UAE government entity that supports defense and security investments and promotes innovation and R&D in the defense industries — will facilitate business with the shared objective of delivering efficient and advanced solutions to military, security and government customers from the UAE and across the region. Priority opportunities covered by the MOU include cooperative research and development, regional production and assembly, and post-production support and global logistics focused on the key technology areas of integrated vehicles; power and propulsion — including fuel cell and power generation; and autonomy and connectivity.
Tawazun Council is an independent government entity that works closely with the Ministry of Defense and security agencies in the United Arab Emirates. The Council contributes to maximizing value through innovative budgeting and acquisition systems, and by sustaining technology & innovation to support national industry needs through robust regulations to ensure superior quality. It also seeks to accelerate ecosystem growth by developing capabilities, driving local content, and creating in-country value.
GM Defense delivers integrated vehicles, power and propulsion, and autonomy and connectivity solutions to global defense, security, and government markets. The exceptional reliability of GM Defense’s technologies results from decades of proven performance and billions of dollars spent in independent research and development by its parent, General Motors, a world leader in global design, engineering, and manufacturing capabilities.
