Six deals covering several fields have been signed on the second day of the seventh Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (Dimdex 2022), currently under way at the Qatar National Convention Centre.
A letter of intent was signed between Barzan Holdings and BAE Systems to establish a center to provide technical and logistical services for the Umm Al Houl naval base. The deal includes technical services to support and maintain some parts of the Qatari fleet. Accordingly, a feasibility study for the project will be conducted, and implementation will be carried out after agreement and signing the official contract.
Commenting on the deal, Commander of the Qatar Amiri Naval Forces Staff Maj-Gen (Sea) Abdullah bin Hassan al-Sulaiti said the contract includes equipping the Naval Operations Center with the equipment and devices necessary to enter the service, noting that the significance of this deal stems from the importance of the center which will serve as the eye of the naval command , and all naval tasks will be associated with this center such as electronic warfare, operations, shooting and others.
Maj-Gen al-Sulaiti indicated that the naval fleet maintenance support agreement will authorise Barzan Holdings to carry out maintenance of the second and third lines of marine vessels and port management, because the first line will be the responsibility of the officers and engineers of the Qatar Amiri Naval Forces.
He explained that marine bases and ports have special importance because usually, under these ports, there are logistical support means for operation, such as electricity cables, gas and oil pipelines, and others. In this context, he referred to Umm Al Houl naval base which includes more than 200km of pipes and power stations, and this requires management, follow-up and periodic and comprehensive maintenance.
He added that the letter of intent aims to localise ship maintenance technology, noting that the Qatar Amiri Navy requires in each agreement the qualification of its personnel, whereby a team from the Amiri Navy is trained and qualified on the terms of the new agreement, whether it includes new technology or other services.
On the agreements and contracts signed on the sidelines of the exhibition, Maj-Gen al-Sulaiti affirmed that the Amiri Naval Forces have begun reaping the fruits of the agreements signed in previous versions of Dimdex, the first of which is the training ship that arrived from the Republic of Turkey, which is the largest training ship in the world with an area of 90 meters and a capacity of 63 recruits. The ship is equipped with a hospital and can travel to the farthest countries with ease.
For his part, vice-president and chief strategic procurement officer of Barzan Holdings Abdullah bin Hassan al-Khater said that in addition to Umm Al Houl letter of intent, a memorandum of understanding was signed with Honeywell to provide spare parts for the F-15 aircraft that are operated in the country. Additional studies will be conducted to sign other complementary agreements.
Another MoU was signed with Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) on Quantum Computing for development and research in this new field, which is expected to have a great local return; as well as a MoU with Thales Group to establish a center for technical services to maintain and provide technical services for communications equipment of the Qatari armed forces. Al-Khater noted that the center will initially serve Qatar, with an intention to serve neighbouring countries, as Qatar aspires to be a regional center for defense industries and services in the future.
Al-Khater added that a contract was signed with Aselsan to supply towers for Qatari armoured vehicles, expressing the hope that these deals will have positive outcome for Qatar and the Qatari Armed Forces.
On the other hand, Qatar University signed an agreement with the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAS) for academic development in the aviation and aerospace industries.
Dimdex is one of the key events in the international defence and maritime security calendar, providing exhibitors with a platform to establish relationships and discuss business with international decision makers from the military sector, thus enhancing deal-making opportunities, not only in Qatar and the Middle East, but on a global level.
