Barzan Holdings is focusing on empowering Qatar’s armed forces and meeting the nation’s defence requirements, a senior official told Gulf Times on the sidelines of Milipol Qatar 2022.
Abdullah al-Khater, Barzan Holdings vice-president and chief strategic procurement officer, explained that the objective is achieved through its high value procurement contracts, partnership with leading global firms, research efforts and development of innovative security technologies.
 

Abdullah al-Khater
“Serving Qatar through its subsidiaries, joint ventures, and partnerships, Barzan Holdings has fostered local knowledge and expertise in a multitude of domains including air, land and sea combat systems, cybersecurity, training, and consultancy.
"The government-owned entity has also helped open new industries across Qatar, creating fresh career paths and new learning and development opportunities, while facilitating knowledge and technology transfer. Barzan is helping establish a new industrial ecosystem across the country, in line with its mission to promote long-term security, human capacity building, research and development, and technological innovation."
At Milipol 2022 Barzan Holdings is representing 11 firms: Barzan Aeronautical, Barzan Industrial Group, Barzan Maintenance Shield, Bindig, Barood Ammunition Factory, BQ Solutions, Edraq Healthcare Solutions, QSUR, Rheinmetall Barzan Advanced Technologies, Special Operations Training Company and Ibtechar.





Barzan Aeronautical operates as an independent commercial company focused on the application and use of aerial Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) systems that support the defence and security requirements of Qatar.
Barzan Industrial Group (BIG) is the engineering and manufacturing arm of Barzan Holdings. Barzan Maintenance Shield (BMS), a wholly-owned Barzan Holdings subsidiary, is a local commercial leader and one-stop solution for all maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services across the Qatari security and defence sector.
Bindig is a joint venture between Barzan Holdings and Beretta Holding. It aims to provide the Qatar Armed Forces with ultra-modern and superior weapon systems. Barood Ammunition Factory is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Barzan Holdings, a manufacturing firm fully maintained by Qatar’s Ministry of Defence.
BQ Solutions delivers advantage and value to Qatar’s military and security forces through expert and specialist defence consultancy and services and supporting Qatar to build security and resilience for the future.
Edraq Healthcare Solutions, a joint venture between Barzan Holdings and Aspen Medical Australia, provides innovative and world-class healthcare solutions to stakeholders in Qatar, including the Qatar Armed Forces. QSUR is the product of a successful pact signed in 2018 between Barzan Holdings, Turkish firm Sur International and the Qatar Amiri Guard to create a joint venture – QSUR.
Rheinmetall Barzan Advanced Technologies QSTP-LLC (RBAT), a joint venture between Barzan Holdings QSTP-LLC and the German technology company Rheinmetall, is established and operating in Qatar to provide technologies-focused solutions to domestic and foreign Security and Defence clients.
Special Operations Training Company (SOTC) provides the armed forces community with the very best in professional training. SOTC delivers coaching and guidance to produce totally holistic capability development.
Al-Khater noted that research and development have been at the core of Barzan Holdings’ mission since its establishment. “Through its growing collaboration with specialist defense and security firms around the world, Barzan Holdings is helping Qatar advance its capabilities. In recent years, the firm has expanded its local partnerships to include educational alliances that enhance local knowledge and technology transfer in the defense and security sectors,” he noted, adding that Barzan is working very closely with Qatar University and the Qatar Foundation in order to work on the research and development aspects. “Research is one of the three pillars that Barzan focuses on,” he said.
Al-Khater explained that Barzan’s latest innovations include anti-drone solutions that meet the needs of the local and global markets. “These were developed in partnership with Rheinmetall Barzan Advanced Technologies (RBAT) to provide a complete solution to counter the emerging threats posed by the proliferation of drones. Barzan Holdings is also continuing work with RBAT on the development of a Qatari System Integration - command and control software - for the deployment of autonomous combat vehicles,” he said.
He added that Barzan Holdings is investing alongside its partners in expanding Qatar’s industrial ecosystem. “Barzan’s investments extend beyond military industries to include the health sector. It has joined hands with Aspen Medical Australia through Edraq Healthcare Solutions to provide innovative and world-class healthcare solutions to stakeholders in Qatar, including the Qatar Armed Forces. When Covid-19 hit the world hard, it moved very quickly to sign an agreement with one of our partners to manufacture ventilators that helped and aided while easing the Covid-19 situation. “We were successful in producing the first locally-made ventilator that was used in the health sector with the military grade,” he explained.
“Barzan Holdings’ portfolio consists of direct investments, early-stage venture capital investments, indirect investments, as well as joint ventures that benefit Qatar through the creation of new technologies and acquisition of intellectual property,” he added.
Barzan will be leveraging its expertise in the security industry and its collection of innovative technologies and equipment to contribute to Qatar’s efforts to ensure the safety and security of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, one of the world’s major sporting events, al-Khater added.
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