The plant is planned to start operating in 2026 and will be built in Iecava Parish, although negotiations with the Bauska County Municipality are still ongoing. The municipality’s initial reaction to the plans to build the plant was positive.
The plant is planned to be built on territory belonging to the Ministry of Defense, where the infrastructure has already been created.
“There are a number of factors in Iecava Parish that favored the choice of a specific location, but we are still in the process of coordinating with the municipality. We will still need government permission, but ammunition production is one of the directions we should move in developing our military industry,” the minister emphasized.
The construction of the plant and the purchase of equipment will cost a total of 12 million euros. One million euros will be European co-financing, and 11 million euros will be Latvian state funding. However, it is to be expected that there will be additional costs for the purchase of raw materials, and the purchase of raw materials is currently very difficult on world markets, as there is high demand and they are in limited quantities. It is expected that Latvia will purchase raw materials from partners in Italy.
The purchase of raw materials for one year may require about 15 million euros. The cost price of one charge will be less than the price at which the manufactured product can be sold. Supplies to the Latvian Armed Forces are also possible.
In an interview, Spruds stressed that there is no reason for local residents to worry, since such a plant must be safe, and various assessments will be carried out before starting production.
“Of course, further dialogue with the municipality is necessary to remove any questions, any possible misunderstandings. In the end, this is also an economic contribution to the municipality, because jobs come here, economic turnover comes here. Therefore, I think that this is a benefit for absolutely everyone – for the state, for the defense industry, and, of course, for local government,” Spruds emphasized.
It has already been reported that at the end of last year the Latvian government supported the creation of state capital for the military industry enterprise Valsts aizsardzības korporācija (State Defence Corporation).
Taking into account the needs of the National Armed Forces of Latvia, the State Defence Corporation will establish joint ventures with Latvian and foreign traders to manufacture specific products, thereby strengthening the security of supply.
One of the first projects implemented by the State Defense Corporation is the creation of a plant for the production of modular powder charges of 155 mm caliber, jointly with the Finnish and Norwegian companies Nammo, as well as the French and Italian companies Nexter.
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2024-07-04 23:35:08