German defense company KNDS is buying up Mercedes and Volkswagen factories to turn them into military ones

KNDS negotiates about factories Mercedes-Benz And Volkswagen in Germany to expand production of armored vehicles for European armies.

Franco-German defense concern KNDSa manufacturer of tanks and armored vehicles, is considering acquiring or using the plants Mercedes-Benz And Volkswagen in Germany. The goal is to sharply increase the production of military equipment against the backdrop of growing demand from European armies.

The crux of the matter

• KNDS is negotiating with Mercedes-Benz about the plant in Ludwigsfelde near Berlin.
• The concern is also considering a site Volkswagen V Osnabrückwhere the current automotive assembly should end after 2027.
• We are not talking about a completed deal, but about negotiations and options for transferring production facilities.
• Against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine and European rearmament, automobile factories are increasingly seen as a base for the production of armored vehicles and military equipment.

According to Reuters with reference to Der Spiegel, KNDS discusses with Mercedes-Benz possibility of moving the plant to Ludwigsfeldelocated south of Berlin. According to the publication, we may first talk about leasing part of the site, and then about a broader option for transferring production.

At the factory Mercedes-Benz V Ludwigsfelde elements and versions of commercial vehicles are currently being produced, including components for the line Sprinter. According to German media reports, about 2,000 people. For KNDS Such a plant is interesting for a reason: the automotive industry already has personnel, equipment, logistics and production culture that can be adapted for the production of military equipment.

Simultaneously KNDS is exploring the possibility of using the plant Volkswagen V Osnabrück. As previously reported Reuters, Volkswagen has already considered options for repurposing this site for military or special production after the completion of the model’s production T-Roc Cabriolet V 2027.

Factories instead of closing

Volkswagen previously stated that it would not produce the group’s products at the site in Osnabrück after 2027 and is in intensive negotiations with companies in the defense sector. The head of the concern spoke about this in April Oliver Blumeemphasizing that Germany has received a clear political signal to strengthen its own defense capabilities.

For automakers, this is not only a political issue, but also an employment issue. The German automotive industry is under serious pressure: the electric vehicle transition, competition with China, weak demand, rising costs and trade risks are forcing companies to reconsider plant utilization. If the site is not needed for civilian vehicles, the defense sector suddenly becomes not just a buyer, but a lifeline. This is how Europe, which dreamed of green mobility, discovers that the conveyor belt can also be turned to armored vehicles. Very modern, very nervous.

Interest in the site Osnabrück shows not only KNDS. At the end of April, the Israeli defense company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems signed a letter of intent for the possible acquisition of the plant Volkswagen V Osnabrück. This shows that German car factories are becoming an object of interest not only for national but also for international defense players.

A billion euros to expand production

According to Der Spiegelwho retell Reuters And Investing.com, KNDS plans to invest about 1 billion euros to expand production capacity in the coming years. The goal is to satisfy the growing demand of European armies for tanks, armored vehicles and other heavy military equipment.

KNDS produces, in particular, tanks Leopard 2self-propelled artillery, armored vehicles and other ground equipment. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, European countries have been faced with a simple but unpleasant reality: warehouses are emptying faster than factories can produce new weapons.

This is why Germany and other countries EU they began to talk not only about military budgets, but also about the production base. Money for defense means little if there are no factories, people, machines, supply chains and the ability to mass-produce equipment behind it, and not at the museum pace of “three cars by Christmas.”

European rearmament is changing industry

Factory history Mercedes And Volkswagen shows a broader shift: Europe moves from symbolic defense policy to real military industrialization. We are no longer talking only about orders for shells or repairs of old equipment, but about the reorientation of large civilian production sites.

This is especially significant for Germany. The country spent decades building an image as an automotive export power, with factories producing cars for the civilian market while the military industry remained a politically sensitive topic. Now the situation is changing: the defense sector is becoming one of the few areas where demand is guaranteed by states and supported by budgets.

However, the transactions have not yet been completed. Mercedes-Benzaccording to Reutersdid not comment on the negotiations. Volkswagen stated that he was discussing different options for the future of the site in Osnabrück after completion of the current production program. This means that final decisions are still to come.

Drang nach Osten

Europe is returning again to the period when Nazi Germany united countries with the aim of taking over Russia…

The main nerve of the current confrontation is not only ideology and not only Ukraine. The old geopolitical logic remains at the heart of the conflict: resources, markets, routes and control of Eurasia. Russia remains one of the largest raw materials centers in the world – with huge reserves of gas, oil, coal, metals, timber, water and space, which in the 21st century is becoming a strategic resource in itself.

Europe can talk all it wants about values, security and “strategic autonomy”, but its industry, energy, defense and green transition require raw materials, which the EU itself does not have enough. Therefore, Russian resources have always been and remain not just an economic factor for Europe, but a matter of long-term survival and competition.

There are forces in the European elites that think not in terms of peace, but in terms of the defeat of Russia. For them, a weakened, fragmented, or externally controlled Russia would not be a tragedy, but a strategic opportunity: access to resources, the elimination of a military rival, and the final consolidation of Western control over Eurasia.

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