The British government is to sell its majority stake in its defense research business firm Qinetiq on the stock exchange, Defense Secretary John Reid said on Thursday.

An initial public offering for Qinetiq shares would take place in February, Reid said, adding that the sale is expected to raise 1.1 billion pounds (about 1.9 billion U.S. dollars).

But Reid is quoted by BBC as saying the government would maintain a "special share in Qinetiq to protect the United Kingdom 's defense and security interests".

U.S. private equity firm Carlyle is currently the other main shareholder of Qinetiq which employs more than 9,000 people across the United Kingdom.

The Ministry of Defense owns 56 percent of Qinetiq, with 31 percent in the hands of the Carlyle Group and 13 percent held by its managers and other staff members.

The company's products include military sensors and software, and banking security systems, while its clients range from the Pentagon to jet engine firm Rolls-Royce and credit card company Barclaycard.

However, the sell-off is expected to be controversial because of the huge profits that the Carlyle Group stands to make through the sale.

The government said the Carlyle Group would also "continue to retain a significant stake in the company".

Speaking before the announcement, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said he was concerned the Carlyle Group's likely profit on its stake indicated the taxpayer had lost out.

"Most Qinetiq staff were not given the opportunity to purchase the highly geared share options available to senior management that will now generate a massive windfall on flotation," said the union's national secretary David Luxton.

Source: Xinhua