Rheinmetall Buys U.S. Military Supplier Loc Performance

Germany’s largest arms manufacturer Rheinmetall signed a deal on Tuesday to buy the military vehicle supplier Loc Performance for $950 million. This expands its business into the United States, opening the door to tens of billions of dollars’ worth of orders from the U.S. military.

Supplying the U.S. military: Rheinmetall already has factories in the U.S., working in cooperation with Lockheed Martin and the U.S. military. It hopes that the acquisition will help it win bids to build a new generation of infantry fighting vehicles and military trucks for the U.S. military.

In the U.S.A., we have a promising position in two major military projects, both in the XM30 infantry fighting vehicle program and in the [Common Tactical Truck] project. The acquisition of Loc Performance gives us the manufacturing readiness that will enable us to realize the major orders we are aiming for. This puts us in a position to realize 100 percent local value creation in the U.S.A.
—Matthew Warnick, ceo of American Rheinmetall Vehicles

Ignoring concerns: Rheinmetall’s website states that the “transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.” The U.S. government can stop acquisitions of U.S.-based companies by foreign companies if it poses a credible threat to national security.

But the government appears to have no such concerns about this deal. This is perplexing given Rheinmetall’s history in two world wars.

A grander strategy: In a secret meeting in 1944, SS leadership directed Rheinmetall and other businesses to take its business underground and abroad. This meeting was kept classified by the U.S. government until 1996. Rheinmetall’s recent explosive growth should be concerning for this and other reasons.

As Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry explained in “Rising From the Underground,” Rheinmetall has a grander strategy than making money.