26 Nov 13. Manroy PLC (“Manroy” or the “Company”) Statement regarding recent share price movement. Manroy, the AIM quoted UK defence contractor, notes the recent movement in its share price and confirms that it is in very preliminary separate talks with each of Herstal SA (“Herstal”), Beretta Holding S.p.A. (“Beretta”) and U.S. Ordnance, Inc. (“USO”), which may or may not lead to an offer being made for the whole of the issued share capital of the Company. There can be no certainty that a formal offer will be made for the Company or the terms on which such an offer may be made. The Company has now been notified that discussions with USO have been terminated but active discussions continue with Herstal, although the discussions with Beretta (which would only ever be as to an all cash offer) are not active they have not been terminated. There can be no certainty that a formal offer will be made for the Company or the terms on which such an offer may be made.
26 Nov 13. IFS and BAE Systems plc announce the restructuring
of their joint venture IFS Defence Ltd into a strategic relationship. All transactions are expected to be completed within 2 months. IFS Defence was established as a joint venture by IFS and BAE Systems in 2000 to serve as their go-to-market vehicle for the military, defense, civil aviation, and asset service sectors of the global aerospace and defense (A&D) industry. Over the last 13 years, IFS Defence has played a pivotal role in a number of major implementations, supporting many of the world’s leading A&D organizations including the Eurofighter program, Her Majesty’s Naval Bases in the UK, SAAB, Lockheed Martin (in support of the British Army and the F35 Joint Strike Fighter program) and most recently Emirates. (Source: Open Source Information Report)
26 Nov 13. In a rare announcement of its military business, NEC trumpeted an order worth 120bn yen ($1.18bn) over the two years to last March. It held a media tour at its plant in Fuchu, western Tokyo, where reporters, accompanied by ground forces, were shown how military equipment is tested. Even more striking, executives openly said that NEC now hopes it will be able to export some of that equipment in the future – a comment that would have been taboo just two years ago. “We should be able to someday export some of the communications systems, if we remove software designed for the SDF,” to address security concerns, Yasuhiro Ito, vice president at NEC’s aerospace and defense public business unit said on the sidelines of a news conference, showcasing portable high-speed wireless networks, featuring manpack radios, and mini cell towers set up on military trucks. Former mobile phone and semiconductor powerhouse NEC’s willingness to come out and embrace its role as a military equipment supplier represents a shift in public perception of Japan’s troops, triggered in part by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. On the news, people watched the troops wade waste deep in the cold ocean, mud, and rubble to find survivors, dislodging memories of Japan’s imperial armed forces and their behavior during World War II. “That changed the way people see the troops,” Mr. Ito said. Not that the company’s been hiding its role in Japan’s military industry. In NEC’s annual report, it lists “aerospace and defense systems” as a part of the company’s public sector business. In response to the occasional scandal in which it admits to overcharging the defense ministry and associated agencies, the company has issued apologies and comments on the financial impact, and occasionally executives step down. But the company traditionally avoided calling attention to the military component of its operations – still just 5% of its overall sales even after a surge in orders last year. Once a global chip and computer giant, NEC is fighting to reinvent itself as it emerges from aggressive restructuring that included plans to cut 10,000 jobs. Having spun out its computer operations into a jo