Rheinmetall is receiving over EUR 130 million in funding from the European Union (EU) to increase the production of ammunition, the company announced on 26 March 2024.
The amount is more than a quarter of the total sum of EUR 500 million awarded by the EU under the Act of Support in Ammunition Production (ASAP) in order to expand the production of 155 mm artillery ammunition and powder. The funds will be channelled into a total of six projects by Rheinmetall’s European subsidiaries, supporting projects in Germany, Hungary, Romania and Spain.
ASAP is the first EU funding programme designed to expand the production of ammunition. The corresponding grant agreements are expected to be signed in May 2024.
“We are grateful that the European Union has placed its trust in us as one of the most important European suppliers of 155 mm ammunition, to significantly consider us in its funding programme,” Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger was quoted as saying in a company press release. “The great importance of artillery is evident from the Ukraine’s battle to defend its country. The European armed forces also need to replenish their stocks of artillery ammunition. We are ready for this and we are already working on it.”
Rheinmetall has been increasing its production capacities since 2022 and aims to produce up to 1.1 million artillery shells per year by 2027. In addition, up to 1.5 million propellant modules and 3,000 tonnes of RDX explosive are to be produced annually, starting in 2026.
Further tenders are expected in the future. In its recently published proposal for a European Defence Investment Programme (EDIP), the EU plans to promote the expansion of production capacities for other defence products.
