Combat vehicles to be made in UK as part of £2.3bn deal

The Artec consortium, led by Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), have signed a contract with the MoD to produce more than 500 Boxer 8x8-wheeled armoured vehicles for the British Army.

Most of the production will take place in the UK, safeguarding and creating a substantial number of British jobs in the manufacturing industry.

Full-scale production will begin in Germany, but 90% of the Boxer vehicles for the British Army will be manufactured in the UK, principally at plants operated by Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL) and KMW’s subsidiary WFEL.

The contract has been awarded to Artec via the European procurement agency Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR). The contract awarded to Artec falls under the UK’s Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV) procurement programme.

Artec will each subcontract 50% of the order volume to Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann. The total number of Boxer vehicles already delivered by Artec or currently on order now exceeds 1,400 vehicles.

The Boxer vehicles will be supplied in several different configurations, including an armoured personnel carrier, command vehicle, specialist carrier and field ambulance. Delivery of the vehicles is expected to start from 2023.

This order marks the return of the UK to a European defence programme having taken part in the Boxer project when it was still in its infancy. Boxer is now on its way to becoming one of NATO’s standard vehicles.

The Boxer is a highly protective 8x8-wheeled armoured vehicle. Its modular architecture enables more operational configurations than any other vehicle system. At present, some 700 vehicles in twelve different versions are on order from three different NATO nations: Germany, the Netherlands and Lithuania. Australia has also ordered 211 Boxer Combat Reconnaissance Vehicles (CRV) in seven variants, the first of which was recently delivered.

Artec was established in 1999. It is a joint venture of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, Rheinmetall Military Vehicles, and Rheinmetall Defence Nederland. The company coordinates serial production of the Boxer and serves as the point of contact for export enquiries.

Rheinmetall www.rheinmetall.com