Common agreement for the Dutch and Ukrainian army. A combat robotic company beat the palm with multiple drone producers
Tests on the field of themis multifunctional drone with tracks. Donetk region, Ukraine, September 8, 2022. Photo: Mykhailo Palinchak / Alamy / Profimedia
The Estonian Defense Company Milrem Robotics and several Dutch companies have signed agreements for the common use of the space in a factory owned by the Dutch industrial conglomerate VDL, the Ministry of Defense in the Netherlands announced on Monday, according to Reuters.
Companies are about to host hundreds of workers at the terminal site and honor orders for both the Dutch and Ukrainian army, a ministry spokesman said.
Milrem, which produces unmanned ground vehicles, were joined by the Dutch producer of Deltaquad drone, a supplier of Dutch air forces, and Tulip Tech, which produces technology to improve the efficiency of batteries and expand the ray of drone action.
Milrem has announced that it will deliver Ukraine 150 vehicles from Themis range, as part of a donation sponsored by the Netherlands.
“Themis platform has already demonstrated its value in fighting conditions and we believe that this contribution will significantly strengthen Ukraine's defense capacity,” said Kuldar Väärsi, CEO of Milrem, in a statement.
The Dutch Ministry spokesman said that other details on what and how accurately will be produced at this factory, where VDL has made cars for BMW until March 2024, is sensitive information for both security and commercial reasons.
The spokesman also said that there are a number of other companies that examine the possibility of using the factory for military production.
A spokesman for the VDL international conglomerate based in Eindhoven, especially as a supplier of the chip giant for ASML computers, mentioned that there is still significantly unused space on the spot.
The VDL CEO, Willem van der Leegte, said in a statement that the partnership demonstrates Europe's ability to “expand and contribute directly to international security”, adding that Milrem's initial assembly line offered a basis for expanding their collaboration.
