There will be more tanks and BBMs: Rheinmetall and Leonardo have created a joint defense giant

German Rheinmetall and Italian Rheinmetall announced the establishment of a joint venture that will produce military equipment in Europe. Bloomberg writes about it.

The new arms giant was named Leonardo Rheinmetall Military Vehicles (LRMV). Rome was chosen as the headquarters.

The rapid growth in demand for military equipment prompted the company to cooperate. LRMV already has its first order – it was made by the Italian government. 

“The first customer will be an Italian customer, but we are sure that others will join us soon”, – noted the chairman of Rheinmetall, Armin Papperger.

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For the Italians, the LRMV facilities will produce tanks and self-propelled guns, the amount of the order is 8.2 billion euros. It includes the supply of 132 tanks and 140 combat vehicles by 2037. 

“A safer Europe can only be achieved with large industrial players. Sometimes this means giving up some of the company's sovereignty or losing a small share domestic market in order to be competitive on the global market,” said Leonardo's CEO Roberto Chingolani. The companies will own equal shares in LRMV, and the work will also be divided equally: 50% will be performed by each party, while 60% of the work will be performed in Italy.

Rheinmetall has two joint ventures in Ukraine – a center for the production and repair of tanks, as well as a production plant ammunition Leonardo is the second largest shareholder of the Munich radar and sensor manufacturer Hensoldt AG, which supplies air defense systems to Ukraine.