{"text":[[{"start":14.65,"text":"Lockheed Martin has emerged as the frontrunner to buy Advent-owned naval technology group Ultra Maritime for roughly $3.5bn, as defence contractors aim to snap up military tech amid conflicts from Ukraine to Iran."}],[{"start":29.55,"text":"Lockheed had moved ahead of rival strategic bidders from the US and Europe in the race to buy Ultra Maritime, a division of Advent’s Cobham Ultra business specialising in anti-submarine technology, according to people familiar with the matter. They cautioned that the deal had not been formally agreed and could still shift."}],[{"start":48.25,"text":"Cobham Ultra was formed after Advent took British defence group Cobham private for £4bn in 2019 and subsequently combined it with Ultra Electronics two years later, which it acquired in a £2.6bn deal."}],[{"start":62.4,"text":"Talks between Lockheed and Ultra Maritime were ongoing but an agreement could be unveiled as soon as early next week, the people said. Several other bidders were pursuing Ultra Maritime as part of a competitive auction process."}],[{"start":76.1,"text":"Ultra Maritime manufactures undersea defence technology such as buoys that detect torpedoes and submarines, which are used by the US Navy and Britain’s Royal Navy. Advent put Ultra Maritime up for sale earlier this year, Bloomberg previously reported."}],[{"start":91.25,"text":"Lockheed and Advent declined to comment. "}],[{"start":94.6,"text":"Under Advent’s stewardship, Ultra Maritime’s revenue is on track to jump to about $784mn in 2026 from $494mn in 2023, one of the people said."}],[{"start":108.55,"text":"Last year it struck a partnership with Palmer Luckey’s defence tech group Anduril Industries to develop next-generation anti-submarine tech by combining Anduril’s autonomous subsea vehicles with Ultra Maritime’s sensors."}],[{"start":122.3,"text":"Advent has invested about $170mn in product development and sites over the past three years to boost production speed and deliveries as demand for its products has surged. Ultra Maritime employs about 2,000 people across the so-called Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance between the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand."}],[{"start":144.5,"text":"Lockheed is among the so-called prime defence contractors at the centre of US government efforts to increase weapons production to replenish stockpiles following US operations in Iran."}],[{"start":154.4,"text":"Lockheed’s chief executive James Taiclet was among a group of industry executives who met with US President Donald Trump in recent weeks. Trump has also pressured defence contractors to increase investment by threatening to block dividend payouts through an executive order signed in January."}],[{"start":170.55,"text":"Lockheed has been a selective acquirer over the years. Last year, it struck a $360mn deal to buy classified communications developer Amentum Rapid Solutions. In 2015, Lockheed bought Black Hawk manufacturer Sikorsky Helicopters in a $9bn deal."}],[{"start":188.3,"text":"Shares in Lockheed are up 18 per cent over the past year, giving it a market capitalisation of $125.8bn at Thursday’s close."}],[{"start":198.25,"text":"Since 2020, Advent has invested in global defence companies with a combined enterprise value of more than $15bn, including in start-ups such as Shield AI. Earlier on Thursday it joined a group of backers for autonomous defence start-up Quantum Systems’ latest $1.2bn funding round."}],[{"start":227.70000000000002,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1783069133_7127.mp3"}