Elbit bags big, mysterious Asia-Pacific contract

Elbit Systems Ltd. announced today that it was awarded an approximately $670 million (A$1b) contract to supply defense solutions to a country in Asia-Pacific. The contract will be performed over a 25-month period. Bezhalel (Butzi) Machlis, Elbit Systems President & CEO, commented: “This significant contract award is a testament to the trust that customers place with our solutions and to the leading position we hold in the market.” Even by the usual standards, this is a bare bones news release, with no information on the system being ordered or the end user (beyond the “Asia-Pacific”) released. However the value of the contract suggests it is a big program, while the 25-month delivery time frame suggests it is a relatively mature system. Due to religious reasons, we can rule out Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei as the likely customer, while the significant size of the deal it is unlikely that countries with limited defence budgets like Thailand or the Philippines are the will be able to sign such a deal. This would leave either one of Singapore; India or less likely South Korea given they have had previous, relatively extensive dealings with Israeli companies. And of these, Singapore is most likely to want secrecy in its defence dealings, although India has also been known to keep some defence purchases under wraps. Answers on the back of a postcard, perhaps?