Italy's Leonardo Lifts Guidance for Next Four Years, Alliances Seen Key to Growth

Leonardo Boosts Growth Forecast for Next Four Years with Key Alliances

By Giulia Segreti

ROME (Reuters) - Italy's Leonardo on Tuesday lifted its guidance for the next four years as the defence and aerospace group continues to look at broad international alliances and cooperation with peers to boost its growth.

The state-controlled company aims to "update the concept of traditional defence", it said, focusing on its core business of defence electronics and helicopters as well as developing digital and space technologies, seen as key for future warfare.

"The start of the alliances and international partnerships undertaken in recent months is the element enabling us to accelerate our development," Chief Executive Roberto Cingolani said in a statement.

Since launching its ambitious five-year industrial plan in March last year, the company has signed a joint venture for the development and manufacturing of military combat vehicles with Germany's Rheinmetall and a partnership with Turkey's Baykar to produce unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

It has also set up a joint company with Britain and Japan to develop, design and build an advanced stealth jet and is exploring plans with France's Airbus and Thales to set up a new joint space company.

"This type of inorganic growth is proving to be a key factor for global competitiveness, especially in light of the recent evolution of the international geopolitical context," Cingolani added.

Over the 2025-2029 period Leonardo sees cumulative orders rising to 118 billion euros ($129 billion). Earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation (EBITA) are expected to grow cumulatively by 13.1% between 2023 and 2029.

The recently-created space division is forecast to have an order and revenue growth of 9% and 10% respectively over the course of the plan to 2029, in a market that is expected to grow by some 7% annually until 2030.

Its loss-making aerostructures division, which has in recent years suffered from the fall-out from Boeing's problems, is seen reaching a core profit break-even by the end of 2028 through business diversification and the restructuring of its supply chain.

Earlier on Tuesday Leonardo said revenues this year would rise to around 18.6 billion euros and new orders to 21 billion euros.

The company expects EBITA profit of around 1.66 billion euros in 2025, it added. ($1 = 0.9152 euros)

(Writing by Giulia Segreti, editing by Cristina Carlevaro and Keith Weir)