Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Friday, Oct 03, 2025

UAE defence firm EDGE dominates second day of industry exhibit

UAE defence firm EDGE dominates second day of industry exhibit

The United Arab Emirates signed defence deals worth 8.14 billion dirhams ($2.22 billion) on the second day of a major industry expo in Abu Dhabi, with the bulk of the business signed with a state-owned firm, a state defence acquisitions agency said.
Abu Dhabi defence firm EDGE, whose book value last year was roughly $5 billion, won the biggest deal, a 4.7 billion-dirham contract for its subsidiary Halcon to supply Desert Sting P5 systems, Tawazun Council said in a statement. Halcon also signed a 1.1 billion-dirham deal for its Hunter systems.

UAE pacts with local companies were worth 7.6 billion dirhams, while contracts with international firms totalled just 543 million dirhams, Tawazun said. This occurred despite a heavy presence of foreign firms at this year's International Defence Exhibition (IDEX), including major companies from the United States and Europe.

Another EDGE subsidiary, ADASI, clinched a 1.33 billion-dirham deal for its Shadow system.

"We had a total of $5 billion worth of booked orders last year," EDGE Chairman Faisal Al Bannai told Reuters, adding that roughly $1.4 billion were export orders to roughly nine or 10 countries.

EDGE has clients in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe, he said.

EDGE's Halcon is now selling a UAV named Reach-S for $1.1 million, which "is a 70% reduced price," Al Bannai said, adding EDGE wants to "disrupt" the industry.

He said the firm is also selling loitering drones for $29,000, versus what he said is an industry average of between $140,000 and $170,000.

"Today some of the highest-demand products due to what's happening around the world are loitering drones ... and UAVs," Al Bannai said.

Anton Pashynskyi, chief business development officer at Ukraine state-owned Ukroboronprom, said the UAE and other Gulf countries could learn from Ukraine's experience in facing Iran-made drones.

"We are fighting not only with Russian equipment. We are fighting also against Iranian equipment," he said.

Ukraine had a small presence inside the main hall of IDEX, near other European countries. Russia had a much larger presence, though in the naval section of the exhibition.

Ukraine's appearance at IDEX was to seek partners and suppliers to boost its defence industry amid the war with Russia, as well as to maintain ties with existing clients in the UAE and other Gulf countries, Pashynskyi said.

($1 = 3.6727 UAE dirhams)
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×