Rheinmetall opens Europe’s largest artillery ammunition factory

Rheinmetall AG is opening what will be Europe’s biggest ammunition factory after a slight delay as discussions about security guarantees for Ukraine gather steam and Germany sets out to massively expand its military, Report informs referring to Bloomberg.

Chief Executive Officer Armin Papperger, German Finance Minister and Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte are scheduled to attend the plant’s official opening in Unterluess near Hanover on Wednesday.

Rheinmetall broke ground for the plant in early 2024, in the presence of former German chancellor Olaf Scholz. It was supposed to open in late spring or early summer this year.

The ammunition factory began trial operations in the second quarter of 2025 and will have a capacity of up to 350,000 rounds per year once it is fully operational from 2027 onwards. The new factory in northwestern Germany consists of two buildings, one for production of 155mm artillery shells and one for loading, assembly and packaging.

The investment volume totals around €500 million ($581 million) and more than 500 jobs will be created at the site. Rheinmetall also plans to produce rocket artillery at the plant starting in 2026.

Rheinmetall recently completed another major project in Germany, a plant in Weeze near the Dutch border, where the German defense contractor manufactures center fuselage sections for Lockheed Martin Corp’s F-35 fighter jet.

Rheinmetall’s weapons and ammunition segment has been a major growth driver behind the company’s unprecedented rise in the past three years, recording sales of €724 million in the first half of 2025.

The company’s 155mm ammunition production infrastructure extends over several European countries. Papperger announced on Monday that he would be setting up an ammunition plant in Bulgaria, together with a gunpowder factory, plans for which were communicated in April. Beyond that, Rheinmetall has plants in Spain and Hungary, is building one in Lithuania and is in talks with the government of Latvia.

An ammunition factory is also planned in Ukraine, where Rheinmetall operates a tank repair hub, but Papperger told analysts in an August call that the project had been delayed by bureaucracy, without offering details. Papperger added that Ukraine wants to double capacity at the plant, but that more funding was needed.