Uncrewed aerial vehicle company Orbital UAV was selected to provide engine development support for US-based defence products company Anduril Industries.
As part of the initial contract, Orbital’s engineering team will work closely with Anduril to identify an engine upgrade pathway for one of Anduril’s uncrewed aircraft system programs.
Work is expected to be completed in the first half of financial year 2023 and will involve the delivery of a costed scope of work for the engine upgrade, Orbital said in an ASX announcement.
If the upgrade pathway is approved by Anduril, Orbital would be contracted to complete the development work in the second half of FY 2023.
At this time, both companies will evaluate the potential production responsibilities and volume requirements of the engine.
The latest contract follows a memorandum of understanding between Orbital and Anduril, which was signed in May and enabled collaboration opportunities on existing and new programs of work.
Anduril representatives have conducted an audit on Orbital UAV’s operations and heavy fuel engine capabilities in Western Australia.
Orbital UAV then visited Anduril’s headquarters in the United States to review programs of work Anduril currently has underway and to scope out the initial upgrade pathway contract.
“Having successfully demonstrated Orbital UAV’s superior heavy fuel engine capability to the Anduril team, this contract is a continuation of the collaborative approach the companies have adopted –working on concepts, products and technical solutions in the evolving uncrewed domain,” said Todd Alder, CEO and managing director of Orbital UAV.
The initial contract with Anduril does not affect Orbital’s revenue forecast for FY 2023, which ranges from $20 million to $25 million.
Orbital UAV recently secured a $3.5 million second-stage engineering contract with a major Singapore customer, following the successful launch of three prototype engine systems delivered in 2021.
