Italy to order 500 tanks from Rheinmetall in $21B mega-deal

This might be the largest order in the defense company Rheinmetall's history. The Italians are looking to order over 500 tanks from the German manufacturer. According to n-tv.de, the contract could be worth 21 billion dollars.

Italy plans to purchase military equipment in Germany, including Panther battle tanks and Lynx infantry fighting vehicles, according to the newspaper Handelsblatt. The order will be fulfilled over 15 years and will include the maintenance of the combat vehicles. The estimated cost of the transaction is 21 billion dollars.

German media have pointed out that the company has neither confirmed nor denied this information. As a result, Rheinmetall's shares increased by 3.4 percent.

In fulfilling the order, the German company is set to cooperate with the Italian defense company Leonardo. "In the case of large orders in the defense industry, an attempt is usually made to fulfill part of the volume in the client's country," notes "Handelsblatt." In this case, it is about tanks.

This is another large order for Rheinmetall in recent times. Recently, the company announced the signing of a framework agreement with the Bundeswehr, which provides for the delivery of up to 7,165 vehicles worth nearly 3.7 billion dollars. Meanwhile, in June, the Bundeswehr ordered ammunition worth 9.3 billion dollars.