A £370 million contract to supply Kuwait with an air defence system is expected to create 100 new jobs in the UK. The Ministry of Defence announced the order on 9 October 2026. According to the department, production will be based in Bristol, with the new roles covering engineering and manufacturing.
The contract will be delivered by MARSS Systems Limited, an EOS-owned company, and is also expected to support the expansion of MARSS’s UK offices. The 100 jobs are a projected result of the deal, rather than confirmation that recruitment has been completed. The ministry has not given a detailed hiring timetable.
Radars and countermeasures in a single system
MARSS will supply and integrate jammers, radars and interceptors, linking them to NiDAR, an artificial intelligence-enabled command and control platform. The order therefore covers both the delivery of equipment and its integration into a single system.
MARSS chief executive Johannes Pinl said the sensors and countermeasures would be integrated during 2027, without specifying an exact completion date. The contract announcement does not mean the new system is already fully operational.
Further British support for Kuwait
As the Ministry of Defence explains in its announcement, the contract forms part of Taskforce Sabre, an initiative bringing together the UK government and industry to help Gulf countries acquire systems and weapons.
The ministry also said that the UK had previously supported Kuwait with the Rapid Sentry missile air defence system. According to the department, ORCUS, a Royal Air Force (RAF) system that helps detect drones, is also operating in the country. The new order is intended to extend that cooperation, with additional jobs and an expansion of the company’s facilities among the expected benefits for the UK.
