Aselsan, Türkiye's largest defense electronics company, announced Friday it had signed a contract worth approximately 1.47 billion euros ($1.68 billion) to expand the serial production of air defense systems.

The agreement was signed with the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) as an addition to ongoing serial production projects, Aselsan said in a disclosure to the Public Disclosure Platform.

The company said the deal is expected to boost revenue but did not disclose a delivery timetable or specify which systems the contract covers.

The company is one of the main suppliers of Türkiye's integrated, multilayered Steel Dome air defense architecture. It develops technologies in areas including air and missile defense, radar, electronic warfare, military communications, electro-optics and command-and-control systems.

Aselsan CEO Ahmet Akyol said the agreement would further strengthen the serial production capacity of Türkiye's air defense systems and support the Steel Dome.

"We continue to strengthen the Steel Dome," Akyol said on the Turkish social media platform NSosyal. "With the support of our state, we will continue producing in high volumes and working resolutely for the security of our country," he added.

NATO member Türkiye first announced plans to build the Steel Dome in July 2024, capping years of significantly ramping up defense production and reducing its dependence on external suppliers.

The architecture crowns years of investment that have helped Türkiye transform from a nation heavily reliant on foreign equipment to one where homegrown systems meet almost all of its defense needs.

The network aims to provide integrated protection against low-, medium- and high-altitude threats through land- and sea-based, locally developed missile batteries, radars, electro-optical sensors, communications modules and command-and-control centers.

Shares soar

In May, Akyol said the company would increase the delivery of products by 50% as part of the Steel Dome, adding that they aimed to deliver more than 150 different components in 2026.

He said the parts to be delivered by Aselsan included early warning radars, ⁠electronic ⁠combat and defense systems and payloads, noting that the Steel Dome parts will comprise nearly a third of the firm's portfolio in the coming years.

Last year, defense companies signed $6.5 billion worth of contracts to reinforce and develop the Steel Dome. Of those, some $3.2 billion worth belonged to Aselsan.

Aselsan shares rose over 4% following Friday's announcement. The company has outperformed leading global defense and aerospace firms, as its shares gained almost 49% in the first half of the year.

Often working in close joint production with another Turkish defense company, Roketsan, Aselsan provides systems to cover everything from low-altitude micro-drones to high-altitude ballistic protection.

Some of the products include the Korkut, a mobile, dual-barrel, self-propelled anti-aircraft gun; the Hisar-A and Hisar-O, low- and medium-altitude air defense missile systems; and the Siper, a long-range, high-altitude air and missile defense system.

Aselsan also supplies Hakim, the upper-level command-and-control system responsible for coordinating the components within the architecture.

New air defense mass production deals

Separately, on Friday, the SSB said it signed additional serial production contracts with Aselsan and Roketsan for the Hisar-A and Hisar-O systems for the Steel Dome.

"A major day in the defense of the Sky Homeland," SSB head Haluk Görgün said in a statement on the Turkish social media platform NSosyal.

Görgün added that Türkiye is determined to reinforce its air defense architecture and commitments within NATO.

The Hisar family was developed jointly by Aselsan and Roketsan, while the missile warheads were developed by the defense research institute TÜBITAK SAGE.

Hisar-A is designed primarily to protect mobile and armored units against low-altitude threats, while Hisar-O provides medium-altitude point and regional air defense.

The systems are designed to counter threats including fighter jets, helicopters, cruise missiles, air-to-surface missiles and armed or unarmed drones. The Hisar-A+ variant has an interception range of up to 15 kilometers (9.3 miles), while Hisar-O+ can engage targets at distances of up to 25 kilometers.