The logo of military technology manufacturer Rheinmetall is pictured during a media day at a Convoy Support Center (CSC), a logistical hub providing rest, supplies, accommodation, security services and assembly areas to support military troop movements in Germany, as Bundeswehr prepares to advance to Lithuania in the next days to.
May 6 (Reuters) – Rheinmetall is seeking about 12 billion euros ($14 billion) from Germany to take over the country’s troubled F126 frigate programme, lifting the total cost of six warships to roughly 14 billion euros, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Wednesday.
The FT, citing people familiar with the talks, said Rheinmetall’s naval arm laid out terms after six months of due diligence on a deal that would see it replace Dutch shipbuilder Damen on the delayed project.
The offer includes an inflation clause and a first-ship delivery in 2032, four years later than first planned, according to the FT.
Berlin is also planning to buy smaller “off-the-shelf” MEKO A-200 frigates from TKMS at about 1 billion euros each, which one source described as leverage in the Rheinmetall talks, according to the FT.
Rheinmetall did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
($1 = 0.8484 euros)
Writing by Linda Pasquini, editing by Kirsti Knolle
