Rheihmetall to Open Air Defence Systems Plant in Ukraine

Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger has announced plans to set up another joint venture in Ukraine to produce air defence equipment. He made the announcement at the annual general meeting, the German Aid to Ukraine project, Ukrinform reports.

It is noted that it will take at least a year or two before the new joint venture begins production.

According to Welt, Rheinmetall's CEO also said that the workshop for the maintenance of damaged German-made tanks in Lviv would start operating at full capacity in May-June.

The head of Germany's largest arms company made this point several times at the general meeting: "We will not leave Ukraine... These people are fighting for the freedom of Europe with their blood".

According to him, Rheinmetall is "the largest industrial supporter of Ukraine in its defence against Russian aggression" and is investing in the construction of facilities.

Speaking about the construction of new ammunition plants and other facilities, Papperger noted that after the purchase of Spanish ammunition manufacturer Expal in 2023 for €1.2 billion, another €1.1 billion will be invested in expanding production capacity.

Prior to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, the concern produced 70,000 artillery shells a year, and now the capacity is planned to increase to 700,000 shells by 2025 and 1.1 million in 2027 thanks to new production sites in Germany, Ukraine and Lithuania.