Ammunition, ammunition, ammunition!

The company Rheinmetall must have heard this call from the inspector of the navy, Vice Admiral Jan C. Kaack. Rheinmetall has opened the largest ammunition plant in Europe in Unterlüß, Lower Saxony. The aim? To supply the Bundeswehr and European partners with ammunition. There's not much for the navy yet, but that could still happen!

The plant was built in just 15 months and will create up to 500 jobs. The investment amounts to almost 500 million euros and is part of a larger strategy to strengthen European defence. The plant is huge - up to 350,000 artillery shells are to be produced annually on an area of around 30,000 square metres. By 2027, the plant is set to be the largest of its kind in Europe or even the world. The production of rocket motors for artillery rockets is also planned from 2026. Politicians such as German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius emphasised the importance of the plant for national security and European defence cooperation. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned against the armament efforts of Russia and China and emphasised the need to strengthen European armaments.

A letter of intent for a further Rheinmetall plant in Romania was also signed at the opening, with an investment of around 550 million euros. Rheinmetall has also taken over the Spanish manufacturer Expal Systems and plans to produce 1.5 million artillery shells a year in its international production network from 2027.

In the photo from left: NATO Secretary General Marc Rutte, Finance Minister and constituency MP Lars Klingbeil, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger