Rheinmetall has inaugurated a new munitions factory in Unterlüss, Germany, 18 months after laying the first stone, with NATO chief Mark Rutte in attendance.

The Lower Saxony government expedited permits, and nearby allotment gardens were cleared to make way for the site. The plant is designed to produce hundreds of thousands of artillery shells annually, with tens of thousands of 155 mm rounds due this year and output rising to 350,000 within two years. A large share will go to Ukraine, which fires thousands of shells daily. Rutte told NOS the facility is crucial, saying Russia and China are rapidly expanding industry and that the West is catching up on ammunition and must do so in areas such as tanks.

Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger said the plant will be Europe’s largest, possibly the world’s, and linked it to the Zeitenwende sparked by a speech from Germany’s previous chancellor Scholz after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He thanked German political leaders. The Bundeswehr’s depots need replenishing, and the firm says fully domestic output supports Germany’s “strategic sovereignty”.

This spring, a large Bundestag majority relaxed strict budget rules for defence, enabling borrowing of hundreds of billions of euros to invest and aiming to make the Bundeswehr Europe’s strongest conventional force. Arms makers including Rheinmetall benefit; its share price has risen sixteen-fold since early 2022.

Public and political resistance persists. Only a handful protested at the site. The AfD and Die Linke oppose defence spending, and disquiet within government is strongest in the SPD. Around 100 SPD figures signed an open letter rejecting an “arms race” and urging negotiations with Russia, preferring funds for poverty and climate. SPD leader and vice-chancellor Lars Klingbeil, a guest at the opening, argued military strength and diplomacy go hand in hand. The plant adds 500 jobs. The state economy chief says the sector provides tens of thousands of jobs in Germany and 200,000 at suppliers. Rheinmetall is hiring many former automotive workers, as Volkswagen scales back some Lower Saxony plants. Even with peace, production is expected to continue due to years of restocking and long-term orders.

(Source: NOS)