Rheinmetall is building an extensive new ammunition production facility in Germany with the aim of supplying the Bundeswehr independently. The facilities for so-called medium-caliber ammunition should be ready in January, the armaments company confirmed.
Previously, there had been political anger in Berlin over the Swiss veto against ammunition deliveries from Germany to Ukraine. The export of old stocks for anti-aircraft gun tanks cheetah required weapons material would have required the approval of the Swiss government, which, however, refused with reference to its own neutrality.
Rheinmetall also pointed to significant pent-up demand for ammunition in Germany and gaps created by support from Ukraine. They are to be filled in accordance with NATO specifications. A spokesman for the armaments company told the German Press Agency that the focus of the new demand situation is on efforts “to set up the ammunition supply in Germany again, in principle, independently of foreign production facilities”. It was decided to build a new production facility for calibers from 20 to 35 millimeters in Germany. Production is scheduled to start in June 2023.
Germany has so far only supplied a small amount of ammunition for the tanks
In addition, Rheinmetall will then be able to produce a first batch of as early as July cheetah– Deliver ammunition, the spokesman said. According to reports, it is up to 300,000 shots for Ukraine if the federal government issues a corresponding order. Germany has Ukraine cheetah-Panzer left, but could only add a little ammunition at first. The tanks decommissioned by the Bundeswehr are equipped with a 35mm twin cannon from the Swiss armaments manufacturer Oerlikon. The Swiss manufacturer of weapons and ammunition now belongs to Rheinmetall.
“I am very relieved that the industry reacted so quickly. In the future, more and more ammunition that we urgently need will be manufactured in Germany,” said the chairwoman of the defense committee, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP), the German press -Agency. “In view of the security policy situation, it is of immense importance that Germany, together with the NATO partners, becomes more independent in the production of ammunition.”
the cheetah-Tanks are used to protect infrastructure in Ukraine against Russian airstrikes. They also protect port facilities necessary for the transportation of Ukrainian grain to world markets. The fact that the Swiss government twice vetoed deliveries of ammunition from Germany to the Ukraine, with reference to its neutrality, was grudgingly accepted in Germany.
Germany wants to spend a lot of money on ammunition
The Bundeswehr has also been purchasing medium-caliber ammunition from Switzerland for its Mantis anti-aircraft weapon system, for the main armament of the Puma infantry fighting vehicle, a naval gun and for the Tornado and Eurofighter combat aircraft. These are types of ammunition in calibers from 20 millimeters to 35 millimeters, which are now being manufactured on new machines in Germany.
Germany intends to spend a total of more than 20 billion euros on ammunition, including rockets and artillery ammunition, in the coming years. Rheinmetall sees itself as “responsible for supporting the federal government to the best of its ability in restoring the Bundeswehr’s ability to defend itself,” said the spokesman, who did not expressly mention Switzerland. The decision to build a new production line and expand production capacity for ammunition in Germany is independent of plans for existing locations in other countries. Where exactly the production facilities will be built is not yet publicly known.
The Rheinmetall spokesman continued: “We expressly see the step described as a contribution by industry to strengthening the Federal Republic of Germany’s ability to act in foreign and security policy and to ensuring Germany’s security within a strong North Atlantic Alliance and a united European Union by creating suitable capacities raise.”
An acquisition in Europe that Rheinmetall recently announced also serves to expand capacity in the ammunition sector. With the takeover of the Spanish Expal Systems, the company will more than triple its capacity in the field of artillery ammunition and double it in the medium-caliber range and mortars. The takeover is to be completed by summer 2023 at the latest, once the antitrust reviews have been completed.