Rheinmetall lands record deal with Bundeswehr amid rising defence budget
The German defence company Rheinmetall has received a record order from the Bundeswehr to deliver military trucks. The company announced that a framework agreement had been signed, including the delivery of up to 6,500 vehicles for up to CAD 5.17 billion.
At the end of June, the Bundeswehr ordered ammunition from the Düsseldorf-based company worth approximately CAD 12.63 billion.
German company with a major order
According to the framework agreement, 610 vehicles worth more than CAD 448 million have been ordered immediately, and 250 trucks will be delivered this year - reported the portal of the newspaper "Handelsblatt." The largest portion of the contract will be financed from a special Bundeswehr fund worth CAD 149.3 billion, which the German government created after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In the past, the Bundeswehr has repeatedly ordered military trucks from Rheinmetall. The company is also seeking an order from the Pentagon for transport vehicles for the American military.
If Rheinmetall signs a contract with the Pentagon, the order could be significantly larger than the one for the Bundeswehr. Sources at the company suggest that the U.S. would order about 40,000 transport vehicles. According to Handelsblatt, the value of the contract is estimated at approximately CAD 24.41 billion.
Germany wants to buy ammunition for CAD 21.68 billion
The Bundeswehr's warehouses lack artillery ammunition. Therefore, as the weekly Der Spiegel report indicates, German defence minister Boris Pistorius intends to conclude another agreement to purchase up to 2.35 million rounds of such ammunition for a record amount of CAD 21.68 billion.
Initially, the Bundeswehr wants to order only 200,000 rounds of ammunition for approximately CAD 1.95 billion, which will be delivered by 2030. This is primarily to replenish military warehouses.
Der Spiegel explains that Pistorius wants (in this way) to ensure that both arms companies will build further production capacities for the scarce 155-millimetre ammunition in Germany. Domestic production is associated with significant security considerations - emphasizes the Ministry of Finance.
This is the second major ammunition transaction in recent times - a few weeks ago, the Ministry of Defence concluded a similar agreement with the defence company Rheinmetall for up to CAD 12.63 billion so that it could launch a new production line in Lower Saxony - reminds "Der Spiegel."
