The Ministry of Defence today signed a £998 million contract for QinetiQ to test its helicopters, weapons and vehicles for five years.
The third tranche of a 25-year deal is worth almost £50 million more than the last five-year contract, whose value was £951 million. The first deal, struck in 2003, was worth £964 million.
Shares in FSTE 250-listed QinetiQ, which was the Government’s military gadget maker, shot up more than 4%, or 7.9p to 195.9p in response. The latest contract had seen “some minor changes in scope.” It also sees the firm manage 17 MoD-owned sites, look after each one’s their equipment, land and buildings, and provide training and support. QinetiQ says that since the agreement was first signed in February 2003, it has “more than doubled output under the contract, as measured by milestones delivered, [and] is on track to achieve £700 million savings for the MOD” over the deal’s quarter-century lifetime.
Chief executive Leo Quinn, Qinetiq’s chief executive, said: “This agreement is recognition of the expertise of our people and their ability to consistently deliver support to Britain’s armed forces. We are committed to continuing to invest in these capabilities over the next five-year period to provide this vital service to the MoD in support of the front line.”
