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- DroneShield (DRO) has appointed Christopher Pyne’s lobbying firm to oversee its bids for government defence contracts
- The defence tech developer hired Pyne and Partners to support its executive team as it jockeys for a bigger piece of Australia’s defence expenditure pie
- Last year, the Morrison Government earmarked nearly $43 billion in defence funding for 2020-2021
- Pyne and Partners is led by former Defence Minister Christopher Pyne and his previous Chief of Staff, Adam Howard
- Today’s announcement comes after DroneShield revealed it banked over $2.1 million in customer receipts during the December quarter — an all-time high for the company
- DRO shares closed down 2.86 per cent, trading at 17 cents each
DroneShield (DRO) has appointed Christopher Pyne’s lobbying firm to oversee its bids for government defence contracts.
The defence tech developer hired Pyne and Partners to support its executive team as it jockeys for a bigger piece of Australia’s defence expenditure pie.
It comes after the Morrison Government announced it would set aside nearly $43 billion in defence funding in 2020-2021 — accounting for 2.19 per cent of Australia’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Pyne and Partners is led by the former Defence Minister and his previous Chief of Staff, Adam Howard. Back in 2018, Howard formed part of a key campaign to make South Australia home to the country’s National Space Agency.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first time Christopher Pyne and DRO have crossed paths. In 2018, Pyne met with DroneShield boss Oleg Vornik at the Defence Services Asia conference to discuss the ASX-listed business’ defence capabilities.
At #DSA2018 in Malaysia visiting the Team Defence Australia Stand with companies like DroneShield, Thales and Defence Vision! Lots of great Australian companies here showcasing their capabilities to the world. #auspol #ausdef pic.twitter.com/FyUXloPOqW
— Christopher Pyne (@cpyne) April 16, 2018
Overall, DroneShield hopes the firm’s appointment will underpin its growth within Australia’s defence and government circles.
Today’s announcement comes after DroneShield revealed it banked over $2.1 million in customer receipts during the December quarter — an all-time high for the company.
At the end of 2020, the anti-drone and weapons manufacturer held $16.3 million in cash and equivalents, meaning it has enough liquidity to support operations for just shy of five years.
It seems investors were wary to buy into today’s news, however, with DroneShield’s share price dipping 2.86 per cent into the red before the bell. The technology stock closed at 17 cents per share.
