Rheinmetall планирует производить боеприпасы в Украине

One of the largest ammunition manufacturers, the German defense company Rheinmetall, plans to open a new plant in Ukraine. The memorandum of understanding for the establishment of a joint venture between Rheinmetall and its Ukrainian partner was signed on Saturday, February 17, on the margins of the Munich Security Conference in the presence of the Minister of Strategic Industries, Alexander Kamyshin, and the Ukrainian Ambassador in Berlin, Alexey Makeev.

The joint venture, called the «Ukrainian Competence Center for Ammunition,» will produce a six-figure number of 155mm artillery rounds per year, according to Rheinmetall’s press release. To achieve this, a new production facility will be built in Ukraine, which will be operated jointly by the partners. Rheinmetall will own 51% of the shares in the joint venture, while the Ukrainian partner, whose name has not been disclosed yet, will own 49%.
«The demand for artillery ammunition in many countries is enormous — first and foremost, of course, in Ukraine,» said Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall, in the press release. «The joint venture will make a significant contribution to strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities, and therefore, security in Europe.»

In October 2023, Rheinmetall already established its first joint venture with the Ukrainian state-owned company «Ukroboronprom,» which will be engaged in the servicing and repair of vehicles, and later — in the production of armored vehicles.

On February 17, «Ukroboronprom» announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation with the German weapons manufacturer Dynamit Nobel Defence, a subsidiary of the Israeli company Rafael.

On February 12, Chancellor Olaf Scholz laid the foundation for a new Rheinmetall factory in Unterlüß (the federal state of Lower Saxony) for the production of ammunition for Ukraine, with a production capacity of up to 200,000 artillery rounds per year.