MBDA’s Italian subsidiary signed a contract worth over $1 billion to supply the Qatar Emiri Naval Forces (QENF) with Exocet, Aster, and MICA missiles, the company said Wednesday.

The contract was signed following a June 16th Letter of Award signed in Rome within the framework of a Government to Government agreement signed between Italy and Qatar’s Ministries of Defence.

Officials from MBDA Italia and the Qatar Ministry of Defence sign a contract worth over $1 billion to provide Exocet, Aster, and MICA missiles. Photo: MBDA.
Officials from MBDA Italia and the Qatar Ministry of Defence sign a contract worth over $1 billion to provide Exocet, Aster, and MICA missiles. Photo: MBDA.

Under the contract, MBDA will supply Qatar with Exocet MM40 Block 3 anti-ship missiles as well as Aster 30 Block 1 and Vertical Launch (VL) MICA air defense missiles.

The new missiles are to be used on Qatar’s new naval vessels recently procured from Fincantieri, the Italian state-owned shipbuilding company.

“[This contract] is proof of MBDA’s capability, thanks to its very comprehensive portfolio of world class solutions, of being able to address the most stringent and diverse of customer missile systems requirements. The contract consolidates MBDA’s highly valued partnership with Qatar and is further proof also of the value of the solutions offered by the company to meet its customers’ requirements,” Antonio Perfetti, managing director of MBDA Italia and executive group director of sales and business development at MBDA, said in a statement.