Indian manufacturer Tata Sons’ defense arm is stepping up its overseas ambitions as India pushes to expand its militaryindustrial base and boost arms exports in Africa from its Morocco factory.
The conglomerate is in talks to supply military hardware to several African and European countries, senior executives told the Financial Times.
In September, Tata took a major step abroad by opening a defense factory near Casablanca, its first ever overseas military production site operated by an Indian private company.
The plant will manufacture about 150 wheeled armoured platform vehicles for the Moroccan government.
“All platforms are already being proposed to countries abroad,” said Sukaran Singh, chief executive and managing director of Tata Advanced Systems.
Describing the Moroccan site as an “entry point into Africa,” Singh said the company is in “deep discussions” with potential buyers across the continent and Europe.
India’s push to expand domestic defense capabilities has accelerated since Modi came to power in 2014. Although stateowned companies still account for 77% of national arms production, the government has increasingly opened the sector to private groups to overcome production bottlenecks and heavy backlogs.
New Delhi has set an annual defence production target of $33bn by 2029, including $5.6bn in exports, a sharp rise from the $14bn in production and $2.6bn in exports recorded in 2024.
