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Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land Ltd. (RBSL) is a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
between the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
’s
BAE Systems BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...
and
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
's
Rheinmetall Rheinmetall AG () is a German automotive and arms manufacturer, headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was promoted to the DAX, Germany's leading stock market index, in March 2023. It is the largest German and fifth largest Europe ...
AG for
military vehicle A military vehicle is any vehicle for land-based military transport and activity, including combat vehicles, both specifically designed for or significantly used by military. Most military vehicles require Off-road vehicle, off-road capabilities ...
design, manufacture and support. The company received regulatory approval on 13 June 2019. It is based in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, with headquarters in
Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...
, and other sites at
Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
,
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
and
Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...
.


History

The RBSL joint venture business consists of BAE Systems Land UK, the UK land systems business segment of BAE Systems, and Germany’s Rheinmetall AG’s defence arm. To create the joint-venture, BAE Systems sold a 55% share of BAE Systems Land UK to Rheinmetall AG. The RBSL joint venture was formally announced on 21 January 2019, with the cost of Rheinmetall’s 55% share of BAE Systems’ Land UK business being £28.6 million. The acquisition did not include Land UK’s munitions and technology interests, or the CTA International (CTAI) JV BAE Systems has with
Nexter Systems KNDS France (formerly known as Nexter, GIAT Industries or ''Groupement des Industries de l'Armée de Terre'', Army Industries Group) is a French Government-owned corporation, government-owned arms industry, weapons manufacturer, based in Versaill ...
, the latter a medium-calibre weapon system that is designed for fighting vehicles. On 13 June 2019, the UK
Competition and Markets Authority The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the principal competition regulator in the United Kingdom. It is a non-ministerial government department in the United Kingdom, responsible for promoting competitive markets and tackling unfair beh ...
(CMA) approved the proposed joint venture. In addition to managing and growing the existing combat vehicle support business, the stated intent for the JV was to play a major role in the delivery of the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
’s new Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV) and other strategic combat vehicle programmes, including the upgrade of the Challenger 2 main battle tank fleet. While initially focused on these major UK programmes, RBSL would also form an integral part of Rheinmetall’s Vehicle Systems Division and participate in military vehicle contracts globally.


UK contract awards


Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV)

In November 2020, the ARTEC consortium, jointly owned by Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegman (KMW), announced that it had awarded two separate subcontracts to RBSL and WFEL respectively for the local production and assembly of over 500 Boxer armoured vehicle for the UK. The contract with RBSL is worth around £860 million. Delivery of the vehicles is expected to start from 2023.


Challenger 3

The original intention of the Challenger 2 Life Extension Project was to replace obsolete systems in the turret to extend the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
's Challenger 2 tank’s service life to 2035. Rheinmetall and BAE Systems had been competing as separate entities for the C2 LEP. In September 2019, a single C2 LEP proposal was unveiled under RBSL. It comprised a refurnished Challenger 2 hull fitted with a new all-welded turret armed with a Rheinmetall Rh-120 L55A1 smoothbore gun supported by a computerised
fire-control system A fire-control system (FCS) is a number of components working together, usually a gun data computer, a director and radar, which is designed to assist a ranged weapon system to target, track, and hit a target. It performs the same task as a hum ...
. In October 2020 it was reported that Babcock DSG was involved in the bid for the C2 LEP, as the contract "has been split into different strands to ease the funding through
HM Treasury His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury or HMT), and informally referred to as the Treasury, is the Government of the United Kingdom’s economic and finance ministry. The Treasury is responsible for public spending, financial services policy, Tax ...
". In 18 March 2021, Rheinmetall announced that the company had won the C2 LEP contract, and believed to be worth €750 million. It had previously been stated that if selected for the C2 LEP, the vehicle would be manufactured by RBSL in Telford. On 22 March 2021 the C2 LEP was renamed the Challenger 3.


Mission Master UGV

In May 2020, RBSL secured a training and maintenance contract with Rheinmetall Canada to support the delivery of Rheinmetall's Mission Master unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) to the UK
Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
. Under the terms of the contract RBSL will provide training for operators and maintenance support for the British Army, who will use the vehicles in the UK’s Robotic Platoon Vehicle experimentation programme. The aim of this programme is to help determine the extent to which UGVs can enhance the British Army’s combat capabilities and effectiveness, especially for dismounted troops at platoon level. To reduce the load carried by foot soldiers, the Army has received four cargo variants of the Mission Master, these each able to carry up to half a tonne of supplies, tactical kit, or medical equipment and come complete with two stretchers that can be easily attached in just 60 seconds to carry wounded personnel.


FUCHS CBRN upgrade

In October 2020, RBSL was awarded a £16 million contract by the UK‘s Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) organisation to upgrade and sustain the British Army’s fleet of Rheinmetall-supplied TPz Fuchs armoured reconnaissance vehicles. Work will be conducted from RBSL’s Telford facility. The contract includes a new support agreement to provide spares, maintenance, and training for the vehicles.


Norwegian contract award

The Norwegian Defence Research Establishment awarded Rheinmetall a contract for delivery of a Mission Master XT to the
Norwegian Army The Norwegian Army () is the land warfare service branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Army is the oldest of the Norwegian service branches, established as a modern military organization under the command of the King of Norway in 1628. The ...
. In August 2023 the armys intelligence battalion received a unit for testing.


References


External links

* {{Official website Military vehicle manufacturers Joint ventures Defence companies of the United Kingdom Electronics companies of the United Kingdom Manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom