The Federal Anti-cartel Agency has approved plans by three arms manufacturers - Rheinmetall, KNDS and Thales - to establish a joint venture based in Germany.
"We are increasingly seeing cooperation projects between various European companies," the Reuters news agency quoted Andreas Mundt, president of the Bonn-based antimonopoly authority, as saying on Friday, April 4. According to the experts, "Rheinmetall and KNDS' previous fields of activity largely complement each other," and therefore their unification is acceptable. Rheinmetall, KNDS Germany, KNDS France and Thales will each receive 25 percent of the shares in the company developing the new generation MGCS (Main Ground Combat System) battle tank. The companies signed a shareholder agreement with MGCS Project Company GmbH, based in Cologne, in Paris at the end of January, Reuters recalls. The aim of the Franco-German weapons program is to replace the main battle tanks - the German Leopard 2 and the French Leclerc - with a single ground combat system by 2040.