Ammunition, no matter what caliber, is in short supply in the Bundeswehr.
A bulk purchase of 20 billion euros would be necessary to cover the acute needs of the armed forces.
However, because there is a lack of production capacity for this, a volume of only 2 billion euros can probably be realized within two years.
The hardships can be explained by the fact that at the end of the Cold War the Bundeswehr made enormous savings and their equipment suppliers have shrunk to manufacturing companies today.
These niche manufacturers are unable to cope with the radical shift to mass production of ammunition or weapons, which has been urgently needed since the outbreak of the Ukraine war.
Since modern industrial standards cannot be used to convert quickly, manufacturers such as Rheinmetall are looking to bridge their bottlenecks through acquisitions.
The Rhinelanders' competitors are also exploring such partnerships in NATO countries.
More money from the state does little to help with the overdue restructuring of the German armaments industry: in February, the federal government had announced around 100 billion euros for important procurement projects with its special fund for the Bundeswehr.
So far, none of the projects is ready for signature.