Rheinmetall opens 155 mm artillery shell plant in Unterlüß

Rheinmetall opened a 155 mm artillery shell plant in Unterlüß on 27 August, expected to produce up to 350,000 rounds a year starting in 2027. (German MoD)

Rheinmetall opened a 155 mm artillery shell plant in Unterlüß on 27 August. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger said Werk Niedersachsen (Plant Lower Saxony) would produce 25,000 rounds in 2025, 140,000 in 2026, and up to 350,000 a year starting in 2027, when he expected it to become the largest ammunition plant in Europe and possibly the world.

Papperger said Werk Niedersachsen began test production in the second quarter of 2025, about 15 months after the ground breaking ceremony by him, then German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, German Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on 12 February 2024.

Papperger spoke of plans to make Unterlüß – covering a total area of around 60 km2, with Europe's largest private firing range – a European centre for artillery ammunition and other effectors. Built on a total area measuring approximately 30,000 m², the plant consists of a shell production line and a loading, assembly, and packaging line. One hundred percent of the added value of the shells is located in Unterlüß, with the involvement of other companies and the local economy, according to Papperger.

In addition, a production facility for rocket motors and possibly warheads is currently under construction, which Papperger noted will be needed, for example, for Germany's planned rocket artillery project. He added that there are plans to build a plant capable of producing up to 1,900 tonnes of Research Department Explosive (RDX), with the option of seven additional components for manufacturing ammunition charges.