VIDEO Half a billion euro agreement with Rheinmetall for a powder factory in Brașov. Bolojan: Romania is starting to emerge as a potential player in the defense industry in Southeast Europe

Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan announced on Monday the signing of an association contract with the German group Rheinmetall for the creation of a powder factory in Victoria, Brașov county. “The future powder factory in Victoria means an investment of half a billion euros, about 700 new jobs, but above all the advantage of producing powders in Romania,” said Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan.

The Prime Minister held joint statements with the CEO of Rheinmetall AG, Armin Papperger, on the topic of this investment at the Victoria Palace on Monday.

“I welcome Rheinmetall's willingness to renegotiate the association contract in such a way that part of the supply chain of the future factory is a local one. In this way, the production unit will be better integrated into the Romanian economy”, declared Ilie Bolojan.

For his part, the CEO of Rheinmetall AG, Armin Papperger, said that Rheinmetall Victoria SA will be the most modern company in the world for the production of double and triple base powders.

“These powders are needed all over the world and especially in Europe to allow help for the defense forces, and they are also needed in Romania,” stated Armin Papperger.

The German official said that Rheinmetall will invest over 400 million euros, and Romania will invest 120 million euros, money that will also come from European programs, such as SAFE.

SAFE-funded projects will be completed this month

Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan emphasized that the Government is close to establishing precisely the projects that will be developed and financed through the SAFE program of the European Union.

“What we are doing today and these days is to finalize the negotiations for accessing European funds through the SAFE program and we expect these negotiations to be completed in the second half of this month,” announced the prime minister.

The Head of the Executive also said that later there will be a CSAT meeting where they will approve these endowment plans in the second half of November, then they will present them to the European Commission.

The Rheinmetall investment, previously announced by the Minister of Economy

The Minister of Economy, Radu Miruță, announced on August 27 that in Germany, the contractual framework for the construction of an ammunition powder factory, “built from scratch, which has the chance to be the most efficient in the world”, was finalized.

In the press release sent at the time, the Ministry of Economy said that the project will be carried out in Victoria, Brașov county, and will be “the most modern powder factory in the world”.

“Together with Rheinmetall, the largest European arms manufacturer, we will produce in Romania the powder necessary for the defense industry, both for domestic needs and for the entire region,” said Minister Radu Miruță, in a post on Facebook.

He stated that “the value of the investment is 535 million euros”.

“The construction of the factory will start next year, it will last 3 years and will guarantee 700 direct jobs in the area. Through this investment, Romania secures the necessary fuel for the armaments industry and a role as a relevant regional player in the field”, added Miruță.

According to the Romanian minister, the ceremony took place in the presence of Rheinmetall's CEO, Armin Papperger, and the event was also attended by officials such as NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, German Vice Chancellor Lars Klingbeil and Bulgarian President Rumen Radem.