Rheinmetall opens repair facility for combat vehicles in Ukraine

MILAN — Rheinmetall has established a maintenance center in western Ukraine to repair German-donated military equipment damaged in combat, as more arms manufacturers are setting up shop in the embattled country.

The Rheinmetall Ukrainian Defense Industry repair facility, a joint venture project between the German company and the Ukraine state-owned enterprise Ukroboronprom, was inaugurated on June 10.

“Marder infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) are already being maintained and overhauled at the hub, and in the future, Leopard 1 and 2 main battle tanks as well as other German-made systems will also be repaired at other locations in Ukraine,” a company statement said.

Rheinmetall will rely on local labor and equipment in addition to providing its own resources to the hub. According to the statement, Ukrainian specialists were trained in servicing armored vehicles at company sites in Germany last year.

By the end of 2023, the German manufacturer had sent over 100 Marder IFVs to Ukraine, and additional deliveries in the “double-digit range” were planned for this year, per company information.

Rheinmetall has also been tapped to deliver Leopard 1 and 2 main battle tanks as well as armored recovery vehicles to Kyiv.

Company officials have previously floated the idea of setting up as many as four factories in the embattled country to produce a wider range of weapons.

There has been a stronger push from the Ukrainian government recently to localize the production of military equipment as well as a growing inclination of Western defense companies to open plants in Kyiv.

Earlier this month, KNDS, the French-German manufacturer of combat vehicles, said it was close to opening a subsidiary in Ukraine that will work with local firms to make spare parts and produce 155mm artillery shells.

Other Western land vehicles producers have weighed the option of opening a Ukraine production site as a more sustainable form of military aid, but few have made the move in light of security risks.

Elisabeth Gosselin-Malo was a Europe correspondent for Defense News. She covers a wide range of topics related to military procurement and international security, and specializes in reporting on the aviation sector. She is based in Milan, Italy.

米兰——莱茵金属公司在乌克兰西部设立了一个维修中心，用于修理德国捐赠的在战斗中受损的军事装备。与此同时，越来越多的武器制造商正在这个饱受战火蹂躏的国家设立工厂。

莱茵金属乌克兰国防工业维修厂是德国莱茵金属公司与乌克兰国有企业乌克兰国防工业公司（Ukroboronprom）的合资项目，于 6 月 10 日正式启用。

“Marder步兵战车（IFV）已经在该中心进行维护和大修，未来，Leopard 1和2主战坦克以及其他德国制造的系统也将在乌克兰的其他地点进行维修，”该公司在一份声明中表示。

莱茵金属公司除了提供自身资源外，还将依靠当地的劳动力和设备来支持该中心。声明称，去年，乌克兰专家在德国的公司基地接受了装甲车辆维修方面的培训。

截至 2023 年底，这家德国制造商已向乌克兰交付了 100 多辆 Marder 步兵战车，根据该公司提供的信息，今年还计划交付“两位数”数量的战车。

莱茵金属公司也被选中向基辅交付豹1和豹2主战坦克以及装甲抢修车。

公司官员此前曾提出在饱受战火蹂躏的这个国家建立多达四家工厂，以生产更多种类的武器。

最近，乌克兰政府加大了军事装备本地化生产的力度，西方国防公司也越来越倾向于在基辅开设工厂。

本月初，法德合资的战车制造商 KNDS 表示，该公司即将在乌克兰开设一家子公司，该子公司将与当地企业合作生产备件和 155 毫米炮弹。

其他西方陆地车辆生产商也曾考虑过在乌克兰开设生产基地，作为一种更可持续的军事援助形式，但考虑到安全风险，很少有生产商采取这种行动。

伊丽莎白·戈斯林-马洛曾任《防务新闻》欧洲通讯员。她的报道涵盖军事采购和国际安全等广泛领域，尤其擅长航空领域的报道。她常驻意大利米兰。