British defence technology firm Qinetiq has sold off its Belgium space division due to “limited” commercial alignment with its global orbital defence ambitions.
Qinetiq has sold Space NV to Belgium-based Redwire Space Europe for £28m, having first bought the commercial satellite systems company in 2005.
The space firm generated around €49m (£43m) worth of revenue in the year to 31 March, as businesses and government’s increasingly look to the sky for greater defence and security products.
The earnings from the disposal are set to help fund a £31m acquisition of Australian defence services company Air Affairs.
Air Affairs, which owns a fleet of special mission aircraft, provides training services and electronic warfare capabilities to the Australian Defence Force, as well as aerial surveillance and reconnaissance in support of government firefighting efforts.
It is the latest acquisition for the company, which in August announced an eyewatering £483m deal for cyber, data analytics and software development solutions firm Avantus, which has close ties to the US Department of Defence, Department of Homeland Security and other Federal civilian agencies.
In a statement today, group CEO Steve Wadey, said: “Today’s acquisition and disposal announcement reinforces the focus of our growth strategy on our six distinctive offerings in our three home countries, delivering mission critical solutions for our customers.”
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