Singapore Technologies Engineering (ST Engineering) has agreed to form a joint venture (JV) with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) in Singapore.

The agreement was signed by ST Engineering’s land systems arm.

The JV, named Proteus Advanced Systems, will be equally owned by ST Engineering and IAI. It will leverage the strengths and track record of its parent companies.

It will market and sell advanced naval missile systems including a next-generation anti-ship missile system.

A statement on IAI’s website read: “The setup of this JV is not expected to have any material impact on the consolidated net tangible assets per share and earnings per share of ST Engineering for the current financial year.”

ST Engineering employs about 22,000 people across offices in Asia, the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East. It caters to different customers in the defence, government and commercial segments in over 100 countries.

IAI is completely owned by the Israeli government. It is a major systems manufacturer whose products are used by several military and civil customers.

In May this year, Israel Ministry of Defense (MOD) and Hellenic Ministry of National Defense (MND) signed the first agreement for the lease of the Israeli Heron unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system developed by IAI.

Separately, in February last year, IAI signed agreements worth $93m with the Indian Navy and Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) to provide naval medium-range surface-to-air missile (MRSAM) systems.