EDGE Group
EDGE Group () is an advanced technology group that develops disruptive solutions for defence and beyond. It is headquartered in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). History. On 5 November 2019, EDGE was formed consolidating more than 25 entities, from Emirates Defence Industries Company (EDIC), Emirates Advanced Investments Group (EAIG), Tawazun Holding, and other independent organisations. The company has a combined annual revenue of over US$5 billion and has more than 13,000 employees working across its five core clusters: Platforms & Systems, Missiles & Weapons, Cyber Defence, Electronic Warfare & Intelligence, and Mission Support. At Dubai Airshow 2019, EDGE was the official  Advanced Technology Partner. Group's 11 participating showcased their range of capabilities which included unmanned aerial vehicles, long-range munitions including the UAE-made ADASI RW-24. AMMROC also announced its plan to open a maintenance facility connected to Al Ain International Airport. EDGE's entity HALCON signed a US$1 billion contract in November 2019 to deliver its Desert Sting lightweight precision guided missiles to UAE Armed Forces. Later, GAL part of the Mission Support Cluster within EDGE Group, signed a contract with Kenya’s Ministry of Defence to provide MRO services to the Kenyan Air Force. GAL also signed  an AED 3.5 billion support contract with the UAE’s Joint Aviation Command. EDGE joined Tawdheef, the UAE’s leading event for Emiratisation, and the second edition of the biennial Mohamed bin Zayed International Robotics Challenge 2020 (MBZIRC 2020), as the official Advanced Technology Partner in January 2020. EDGE’s ADASI also launched its VTOL made in UAE drone at UMEX in February 2020. According to CNBC, the goal of the company is to produce its own defence products and rely less on US and other importers. In 2017, the CG Haenel group, under EDGE, bid to acquire the contract  to supply 120,000 assault rifles to Germany’s Bundeswehr, against Heckler & Koch. In September 2020, the Defense Ministry of Germany announced that CG Haenel secured the contract of $250 million. However, in early October 2020, the award was lifted by the Defense Ministry, due to patent infringement and risk to the taxpayers’ money. In December 2020 SIPRI reported EDGE ranked 22nd in the world's largest arms companies list. According to Pieter Wezeman, Senior Researcher with the SIPRI Arms and Military Expenditure Programme "EDGE is a good illustration of how the combination of high national demand for military products  and services with a desire to become less dependent on foreign suppliers is driving the growth of arms companies in the Middle East." The sales of arms and military services by the largest 25 companies totalled US$361 billion in 2019, with EDGE accounting for 1.3 percent of this total arms sales. According to DefenseNews.com 2021 July report EDGE group is the 24th largest defense contractor.