Qatar: Thales contract

Multinational defence group Thales has won a contract to supply a military satellite communications system to the Qatar Armed Forces, the company said on 20 October. Thales will supply, on a turnkey basis, systems needed to transmit and receive communications on the ground, to process data, and also a network operations centre. Thales – which has worked on a satcom terminals project for Mubadala-owned Yahsat in the UAE – said the bidding process had been long and rigorous. According to Defense News, Thales has seen orders in the Middle East jump from $1.1bn in 2011 to $2.37bn in 2013.