Saab Bofors signs offset deal

Swedish weapons company Saab Bofors Dynamics AB (SBD) has signed an offset contract worth EUR 127 (zł.494.2) million, according to which they will invest, through Norwegian company Nammo, in ZM Mesko. "Thanks to the offset, Mesko will receive money, new technologies, machinery and certificates enabling the production and export of products which had not been produced in Poland before," said the president of ZM Mesko Piotr Mazurek. He hopes that the plant will be able to sell ammunition not only to the Polish army, but also to foreign clients.

Deputy Minister of Economy Paweł Poncyljusz claims that the offset deal will strengthen Mesko's position on the munitions market. He also sees other sectors benefiting from the transaction. "The civil sector will get a chance to increase export sales of its products," Poncyljusz said. The managing director of SBD, Tomas Gosta Samuelsson, is sure that the Skarżysko-based plant is ready to absorb the modern technologies. "The market for such products is big, both at home and abroad, so I'm confident Mesko will be very successful," he said.

The offset deal is a consequence of a contract the Ministry of Defense signed with Saab Bofors for the supply of 36 RBS 15 MK3 missiles to the Polish Navy. The deal was worth EUR 110 (zł.428) million. RBS missiles are considered one of the most modern weapons of their kind in the world - they have a range of up to 200 km and can destroy targets on both land and sea.