The package was awarded on 29 May 2026 by Romania’s Directorate General for Armaments and falls under the European Union’s Security Action for Europe programme. Rheinmetall said the contracts have a total value of €5.7 billion and have now been signed.
To fulfil the orders, Rheinmetall will significantly expand its existing capacities in Romania, where it has operated for many years. The company said it will also ensure technology transfer, with a large proportion of the value added to be generated in Romania, a NATO and EU member state.
Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2028 and be completed by 2030. Rheinmetall said it expects to invest several hundred million euros in Romania as part of the programme.
The projects include 298 Lynx vehicles, a latest-generation family of combat vehicles. Most will be armoured personnel carriers, with additional reconnaissance, command post and medical variants.
The package also includes Skyranger air defence systems based on the Lynx platform. Until those systems are introduced, Rheinmetall will keep Romania’s currently used Gepard anti-aircraft gun armoured vehicles operational.
Rheinmetall will also provide medium-calibre ammunition for air defence systems and armoured personnel carriers. The naval element includes two offshore patrol vessels and two diver support vessels based on designs from the company’s new Naval Systems segment.
The company said a significant share of the value added will be generated in Romania on NATO’s eastern flank. The project is expected to create thousands of new jobs and integrate more than 200 subcontractors into the supply network.
Romania is already one of Rheinmetall’s home markets. Its subsidiary Rheinmetall Automecanica, based in Medias, has been active in the country for many years, and the newly awarded contracts will also be carried out at other sites.
“The contract concluded between the Romanian authorities and Rheinmetall represents not only an opportunity to modernise Romania’s defence capabilities, but also an important step towards revitalising the national defence industry, as over 50% of production will take place in Romania or in collaboration with local companies,” said Mihai Jurca, Head of the Prime Minister’s Office and Coordinator of the inter-institutional working group on the implementation of the SAFE Plan. “It marks the beginning of a new phase of industrial development that has the potential to become a key driver of Romania’s economic growth and the integration of local industry into the European ecosystem over the next decade.”
“This is a significant success for us. We are grateful for the trust that Romania has placed in us regarding the equipping and modernisation of its armed forces,” said Armin Papperger, CEO of Rheinmetall AG. “Together with our Romanian partners, we will establish a far-reaching defence ecosystem here. This also confirms our ambition to further expand our role as one of the industrial pillars of European security.”
