The Defence Export Facility has made loans that will support the export of sophisticated Australian radar systems and patrol boats.
The $3.8 billion facility - administered by Efic, Australia’s export credit agency - was established to grow Australia’s defence exports by helping overcome difficulties in accessing private sector finance for exports.
CEA Technologies will use a $90 million loan to finance the construction of a new manufacturing facility in Canberra to help grow their exports and meet ADF demand for phased array radars.
Austal is in negotiations to build two patrol boats for Trinidad and Tobago using an Export Facility loan of up to $80 million. Austal is still in contract negotiations with Trinidad and Tobago, but has concluded an interim Schedule Protection Agreement to allow work to commence at Henderson.
There has been a 48% increase in defence export applications received in the first quarter of FY 2018/19 over the whole of the last financial year.
Among the top 30 destinations for military good export permits issued by Defence between 2013-2016 by value, nearly 50 per cent were for the US, the UK, Canada, and NZ. The Indo-Pacific region was Australia’s second largest destination market, with over a quarter of the value of permits (North America 22 per cent, Asia 20 per cent, Oceania 16 per cent).