Recent defence contracts

Some noteworthy recent contracts and developments are noted on the next page

KBR has been awarded the Joint Operational Fuel System contract by the Ministry of Defence to supply the Department with fuel-handling equipment which will be used on operations and in support of military exercises worldwide. The contract is for an initial two-year period and will involve the supply of equipment and services worth approximately £22 million.

A £46m contract to buy a fleet of lightweight armoured vehicles will see more 51 new Foxhound vehicles, currently used by troops on patrol in Afghanistan, built by General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS). 

Under a research and development contract BAE Systemsis  to explore next-generation naval maritime capabilities, under the management of MoD's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. In the three-year £32m deal, BAE will conduct research in the 'sense to decide' (S2D) area, intended to collect and compute naval vessel environment information that will assist in battlespace command and control, both above and below water.

At the end of last month the Defence Secretary announced an additional £350m worth of funding for the next stage of design work for Successor, the future generation of UK nuclear-armed submarines.

The Royal Navy is to receive a further five highly-advanced, radar-controlled defence systems (Phalanx 1b) to protect Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships, supplied by Raytheon at a cost of £40m

Private sector bidders are set to start tendering for three major MOD facilities management contracts across England and Wales worth up to £4.35bn, following a programme of visits to key Defence establishments.

The Defence Infrastructure Organisation, the MOD's property and services provider, has awarded a contract of unstated value to IBM  or the implementation and support of its new information management system.

30 Army personnel are part way through a secondment with the UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation where they are supporting UK businesses exporting defence products to foreign investors.

The largest section of future carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth is now complete and on its way to join the rest of the ship.

Four new Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) tankers being bought as part of the Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability (MARS) programme will be called the Tide Class. 

New research by the MOD's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory has found that plants could be used to detect nerve agents similar to those used in the sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo subway in 1995.