BAE Systems has made a £538m offer for UK security consultancy Detica as part of its plans to grow its business in the national security and resilience sector.

Detica provides information management services to the market, where BAE expects sales opportunities to double in value to more than £3bn by 2011.

The acquisition will boost the company's exposure in domestic and US security markets, said Ian King, BAE chief operating officer, UK and rest of world.

"This acquisition will result in a depth of financial and technical capability to address growth opportunities and better serve customers," he said.

"In addition, our broad geographic footprint provides substantial opportunities to grow a national security and resilience business across our other home markets. Our existing activities and structure will provide a platform for us to apply Detica’s capabilities into the US homeland security market."

The deal, which is expected to be completed later in the year, is dependent on regulatory clearance and approval from Detica shareholders.