The defense company’s numbers are currently going through the roof. They reflect the “dramatically increased need for military equipment in many countries,” as the CEO put it.
Demand for ammunition, tanks and other products from Germany’s largest arms company Rheinmetall is through the roof. In the first three quarters, incoming orders in the defense division, including new framework contracts and other customer agreements, increased by around 130 percent to 14.5 billion euros, the company announced on Thursday in Düsseldorf.
Group sales climbed by 13 percent to around 4.6 billion euros in the first three quarters, and operating profit rose by 17 percent to 387 million euros.
Orders for military equipment usually run for a very long time – they only have a delayed and gradual impact on sales. The high order backlog makes it clear that the gunsmith’s prospects are very good. The Spanish ammunition company Expal, whose takeover was completed on July 31, is included in the sales and earnings figures for the first time.
Annual forecast confirmed
“We are on track to achieve our ambitious annual targets for sustainable profitable growth,” said Rheinmetall boss Armin Papperger. “Rheinmetall is needed when it comes to meeting the dramatically increased needs of many countries for military equipment.” At the end of September, the group had around 27,900 full-time positions, almost half of them in Germany. The largest factory is in Unterlüß in Lower Saxony, where, for example, tanks and artillery ammunition are manufactured.
Rheinmetall confirmed its annual forecast on Thursday, according to which group sales for the year as a whole should be between 7.4 and 7.6 billion euros. In the previous year it was 6.4 billion euros.
Rheinmetall plays an important role in supporting Ukraine in its defensive war against Russia, the company has already supplied extensive ammunition and old tanks that have been modernized. The company is paid by the federal government. It was only on Tuesday that Rheinmetall announced that it had received an order for around 100,000 rounds of mortar shells. Extradition to Ukraine is expected to begin shortly and be completed in two years.
Announcement from Rheinmetall
Source: Stern
