EXCLUSIVE: Rheinmetall is ready to partner with Romania, through SAFE: Over 100 Romanian companies are in Rheinmetall’s portfolio and we already produce Lynx components in Romania. We also want to offer ships, defense systems, ammunition and explosives
Andreea SoareThe German company Rheinmetall seems to be more than ready to collaborate with the national armaments industry on major programs of the Romanian Armed Forces, including the infantry fighting vehicle, a program included by the MoD in the SAFE list. Monitorul Apărării şi Securităţii spoke with a representative of the company at the Brussels arms exhibition, BEDEX, to find out what the company’s plans are in Romania, in the future, and how it approaches the Ministry of Defense’s requirements when it comes to SAFE programs. Subsequently, MAS requested other answers from the company, which were sent exclusively to our editorial team.
The Defense and Security Monitor wrote before that Rheinmetall could be one of the big winners of Romania’s SAFE loan, as it could receive contracts worth almost 6 billion euros, out of a total of 9 billion that would go to the Ministry of National Defense. One of the largest contracts would be the one for the infantry fighting vehicle, a 2.9 billion euro contract. This is, incidentally, the contract that several major companies in the industry are “fighting” over, including GDELS, Bae Systems and Hanwha.
A requirement that will make the difference between these companies will be the localization of production, as this is an essential component of SAFE. Rheinmetal already has infantry vehicle factories in Hungary and Ukraine, and the question is whether it would open such a factory in Romania or whether it would end up importing parts from other countries and, possibly, assembling them on the territory of the country. But company representatives tell us that they are prepared to meet the SAFE criteria for production and to generate “almost all of their European revenues through Romanian suppliers”:
“Rheinmetall already has a strong presence in Romania. Components of various vehicles, such as the Caracal aerial vehicle or the Lynx (for customers other than Romania), are already produced here. This means that Rheinmetall’s localization has already started. Rheinmetall involves local industry in the production process – including technology transfer. If Lynx is chosen by Romania, Rheinmetall will have to meet the SAFE criteria for production within the EU. Therefore, Rheinmetall aims to generate almost all of its European revenues through Romanian suppliers,” say Rhenimetall representatives.
Asked if they already have Romanian companies in mind to work with for Lynx, they say that they already have several companies in their portfolios: “Many of Rheinmetall’s suppliers already produce in Romania. Over 100 Romanian companies are already part of the Rheinmetall supplier network. Thus, Rheinmetall not only has Romanian companies in mind, but they are already in its supplier portfolio! In addition, Rheinmetall will continue to strengthen its supplier network for the LYNX contract.”
The Romanian press also wrote that some requirements in the program were requested to be modified in order to “match” what Rheinmetall offers for Lynx. We asked the company representatives if this is true and how they interpret these speculations.
“Rheinmetall does not have the ability to influence the Romanian army regarding its requirements. The requirements are completely derived from the operational and tactical needs of the Romanian forces and their role within NATO. If the requirements ultimately fit very well with the LYNX internal infantry vehicle, Rheinmetall would not be surprised, as other NATO customers have already opted for the LYNX as a modern internal infantry vehicle,” they told us.
Moreover, at BEDEX, we also spoke with Florian Bluhm, Rheinmetall’s vice president for the vehicle division in Europe, who emphasized how important the commonality of the Lynx vehicles is: “Lynx is a next-generation infantry fighting vehicle and is intended for modern military operations of NATO forces. A key advantage is that it has a common platform, just like Boxer: you always have the same platform, but you can integrate air defense systems, 30 mm – 100 mm turrets on it. As we see in Hungary or Italy, there are several configurations that can be purchased. This system allows forces to change their model depending on their operational role.”
What was made clear to us later is that this German company wants to invest in Romania in the long term, not only in terms of MLIs, but also in military ships, air defense and explosives production:
“As a strong industrial partner, Rheinmetall is committed to establishing a defense ecosystem in Romania. This will by no means be limited to vehicles alone.
If Rheinmetall becomes a strong industrial partner of the Romanian forces, Rheinmetall aims to support the forces, for example... in the fields of military vehicles, military ships, ammunition, air defense or explosives production. In this way, Rheinmetall will create over 2,500 additional jobs in Romania,” the company’s representatives said.
Between 2024 and 2025, Rheinmetall has announced several investments in Romania, including the acquisition of Automecanica Mediaş in 2024, a joint venture with Victoria SA for the production of powder, and a Rheinmetall center of excellence, specially created to offer German expertise to Romanians regarding the Lynx.
The Ministry of Defense must sign the arms contracts by the end of May, although this is a large number of contracts, perhaps the largest the ministry has ever dealt with at the same time. At this time, specific requirements for the location of production are expected from the Ministry of Economy and the Chancellery.
