Rheinmetall has received a €300m contract to produce main armament and hulls for the Hungarian Army’s PzH 2000 self-propelled howitzer and Leopard 2 main battle tank.

The contract is part of the Hungarian Army’s modernisation plans.

Under the contract, Rheinmetall will manufacture the main armament and fire control technology for 44 Leopard 2 tanks and 24 PzH 2000s. The company will also produce chassis for the howitzers.

The contract will also cover 13 HX and TGS logistic trucks. Deliveries under the contract will take place between 2021 and 2025.

To deliver the contract, Rheinmetall has forged an alliance with German defence company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW).



KMW secured a contract in December to provide 44 new Leopard 2A7+ tanks and 24 new PzH 2000 self-propelled howitzers to the Hungarian Armed Forces.

The $565m contract also includes 12 used Leopard 2 A4 tanks for training purposes.

Rheinmetall is the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) of the 120mm L44 smoothbore tank gun for the Leopard 2 battle tank.

Leopard 2 also features Rheinmetall L 55 main armament.

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In a press statement, Rheinmetall said: “Tried and tested around the globe, the Group’s 120mm smoothbore gun and ammunition have been continuously perfected right from the start.

“The higher-pressure 120mm L55A1 gun earmarked for the Leopard 2A7+ was successfully qualified at the end of 2017, and already supplied and installed for two Leopard 2 user nations in mid-2018. Moreover, the L55A1 tank gun is capable of firing the programmable DM11 multipurpose round.

The company will leverage its expertise in the tracked armoured vehicles segment and experience in chassis development of the PzH self-propelled howitzer to implement the project.

Hungary aims to upgrade the weapons and equipment of the defence forces under a military modernisation programme.