The facility will produce tens of thousands of 155mm artillery shells annually once operational in 2026.<\/p>\n
Jointly operated with Lithuania\u2019s state-owned energy company EPSO-G under the venture Rheinmetall Defence Lietuva, the plant represents an investment of up to 300 million euros ($346 million) and is expected to create around 150 jobs.<\/p>\n At the groundbreaking ceremony, Lithuanian President\u00a0Gitanas Naus\u0117da<\/strong>\u00a0described the project as a strategic step in bolstering national deterrence and NATO\u2019s eastern defenses.<\/p>\n A second agreement signed during the event will establish a Centre of Excellence for propellant charges, also under Rheinmetall Defence Lietuva. The center will manufacture energetic components and modular propellant charges, with an annual output projected in the hundreds of thousands.<\/p>\n Expanding Defense Manufacturing on NATO\u2019s Eastern Flank<\/strong><\/p>\n The new Lithuanian facility is part of a wider surge in defense production across NATO\u2019s eastern front, driven by growing demand for artillery and ammunition since Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n Rheinmetall has expanded its footprint across Central and Eastern Europe, including maintaining combat vehicles for the\u00a0German 45th Tank Brigade<\/a>\u00a0in Jonava, Lithuania, and planning a\u00a0new artillery production plant<\/a>\u00a0in neighboring Latvia.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the Czech Republic and Slovakia have stepped up joint ammunition initiatives, and Estonia\u2019s\u00a0Milrem Robotics has partnered with Germany\u2019s Krauss-Maffei Wegmann<\/a>\u00a0to produce robotic combat vehicles for NATO partners.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fie.undef.edu.ar\/ceptm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/rheinmetall-lithuania.jpg\")