BERLIN (Reuters) – The German army intends to order 200,000 more artillery shells from gunmaker Rheinmetall than planned, according to a letter seen by Reuters on Tuesday from the Defense Ministry to the commission of the Parliament’s budget.
The army plans to acquire an additional 200,000 155mm artillery shells, worth around 880 million euros ($960 million), as part of its framework agreement with the defense, the letter states. It had already accepted an agreement worth 1.2 billion euros for several hundred thousand shells, fuses and charges.
The new shells are intended to replenish army depots as Germany helps supply Ukraine as it fights the Russian army, which invaded it in 2022.
As Western governments strengthen their militaries and replenish their stocks after supplying weapons to kyiv, Rheinmetall, whose market value has more than quadrupled since the war in Ukraine, is seeing a surge in orders.
By placing this order, the German Ministry of Defense also wants to ensure that Rheinmetall can install a new production line in Unterluess, in central Germany.
Rheinmetall, one of the world’s largest producers of artillery and tank shells, began increasing production after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, where the need for ammunition exacerbated the shortage and left European manufacturers struggling to meet demand.
The magazine Der Spiegel initially reported this increase.
($1 = 0.9169 euros)
(Reporting by Holger Hansen, Andrey Sychev and Madeline Chambers. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
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