A South Australian company has won a major European export deal for its high-tech radars with a global defence giant.
Adelaide-based technology company Silentium Defence has landed new European customers for its flagship passive radar system after securing a deal with defence industry giant Saab Europe.
Silentium was founded 10 years ago and announced on Friday that it had accessed the European market via Saab’s overseas arm after it bought Silentium’s radar systems that are portable via a backpack and are operational in under ten minutes.
The radar systems will be used in the region where anti-drone, ground-based air defence and persistent sensing capabilities are becoming more important.
Saab’s European arm bought the radar systems for an undisclosed price through the company’s Global Export Opportunity Program, which is also supported by the Australian government.
Silentium Defence global CEO and co-founder Dr James Palmer told InDaily that the Saab partnership was “a clear indication that more and more end-users globally recognise the vital role that passive radar plays as part of a solution to solve a rapidly evolving and complex defence challenge”.
“As drones and other low-cost threats proliferate, customers are looking for sensing technologies that are effective, difficult to detect, affordable to deploy at scale, and available now. That’s where Silentium’s technology is gaining traction,” he said.
“It demonstrates Australian-developed passive radar technology in a market where counter-drone, ground-based air defence, and persistent sensing capabilities are becoming increasingly important, establishing Silentium as a trusted supplier of advanced sensing capabilities.”
The system can track and detect objects across land, sea, air and space without emitting signals of their own. This makes it “much harder for an adversary to detect it”, Dr Palmer said.
“In Europe, the demand for passive radar is being driven by the need to detect and track drones and other airborne threats while maintaining a low electromagnetic signature. Our technology can operate as a standalone sensor or as part of a broader surveillance and command-and-control network alongside active radars and other sensors.”
For Silentium, the deal builds on its other export partnerships with clients in the United States and the United Kingdom. These were supported by the South Australian Government’s Global Expansion Programme providing the business a grant to facilitate export opportunities.
Dr Palmer said that “For security and commercial reasons, we don’t publicly disclose every customer or export destination”.
Saab Australia managing director Andy Keough said that the deal was a “strong example of how the Global Supply Chain Program helps connect Australian innovation with opportunities in international markets”.
“Australian innovation is at its strongest when companies work together. Partnerships like this help build capability, support local industry and create opportunities for future growth.”
SA Defence and Space Industries Minister Chris Picton said Silentium Defence was “a great example of a local company taking homegrown technology to the world”.
“From its beginnings in Adelaide, Silentium Defence has grown into an international defence technology business, creating highly skilled jobs at home while expanding its presence across key global markets,” Picton said.
“Silentium Defence’s success shows what can happen when we back South Australian businesses with the ambition and capability to compete on the world stage.”
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