EDGE Group is expanding its presence across Europe as the United Arab Emirates-based defense company looks to build a more integrated regional business through acquisitions, partnerships and industrial investments.
The group has established a new office in Paris as a central base for its European operations. It also plans to develop an engineering and manufacturing facility in the Bordeaux region, where it will adapt technologies from its existing portfolio for European requirements and work with local partners to strengthen production and supply chains.
Miles Chambers, Senior Vice President of International Business at EDGE Group said the Paris office reflects the company’s broader strategic ambitions in Europe. He added that the group is continuing to explore acquisitions, investments and joint ventures, with the Nordic region emerging as a key target market.
EDGE was established in November 2019 and is headquartered in Abu Dhabi with over 35 entities across platforms and systems, missiles and weapons, space technologies, secure intelligence systems and industrial technologies and homeland security. The company has approximately 19,000 employees; in 2025, it took in nearly $8 billion in orders, of which approximately 70% was for export.
Currently, EDGE has more than 2.3 million square metres of covered manufacturing facilities. About 70% to 75% of its capacity is still in the UAE, but the company has diversified its industrial activities through investments and acquisitions elsewhere in the world.
Europe has joined as an integral part of that network. German gun manufacturer Merkel and Haenel, Estonia's Milrem Robotics, Swiss unmanned helicopter specialist ANAVIA and Polish aircraft manufacturer FLARIS are in EDGE's portfolio. The group has also put in an offer for 80 per cent of the shares of Italian propulsion firm CMD.
Further, EDGE has joint ventures with Fincantieri and Indra Sistemas and strategic investments in companies such as Leonardo and Safran. The company is looking to make acquisitions across Europe to build in-house capabilities, not to transfer technology or production capacity to the UAE, said Chambers.
The group has already made investments in companies including Milrem Robotics and ANAVIA, to expand its facilities and teams. EDGE plans on replicating this approach in future investments in Europe, to support local manufacturing and build capacities to serve regional customers.
The Bordeaux facility is planned to concentrate on the localization of selected EDGE technologies, adapting to European needs and creating regional supply chains. The company is looking to become a partner instead of a competitor to European defense companies and their customers.
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EDGE's key areas of focus include autonomous systems, propulsion technologies and air defense. Its work encompasses UAVs, loitering munitions, drones interceptors, unmanned ground vehicles and unmanned surface vehicles. It is also highlighting its vertically integrated propulsion, which could enable “faster development” and less reliance on outside suppliers, it says.
EDGE will be presenting at DALO Industry Days in Denmark with its air defense, counter-drone and autonomous systems. An assessment of possible investments in Nordic defense and technology companies also will be possible at the event.
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The company anticipates increasing demand for multi-layered air defense, counter-drone and long-range strike solutions from Europe. It is especially interested in the development of propulsion and defense technologies for smaller Nordic companies, which are autonomous.
EDGES are still open to acquisitions, joint ventures and strategic investments as potential routes into the Nordic market, said Chambers. The company forecasts that Europe will generate more of its sales as its manufacturing footprint grows and its partnerships and investments extend throughout Europe.