Rheinmetall AG has completed its acquisition of American vehicle manufacturer Loc Performance Products for $950 million. The Dusseldorf, Germany-headquartered defense contractor said Monday the transaction would expand its presence in the United States, the world’s largest defense market, and strengthen its capability to deliver high-volume military vehicles to the U.S. Army.
Rheinmetall Grows US Operations
The purchase of Loc Performance Products grants Rheinmetall a 160,000-square-meter production space, with the potential to further expand in the future. Loc Performance Products, founded in 1971 in Plymouth, Michigan, is a vehicle specialist that serves military and commercial customers. The company has additional facilities in Lansing and Lapeer, Michigan, and St. Mary’s, Ohio.
In a statement, Armin Papperger, chairman of the executive board of Rheinmetall AG, welcomed the approximately 1,000 Loc Performance Products employees to the Rheinmetall Group. He commented that the acquisition reflects Rheinmetall’s vision of the U.S. as a core market for the company in the future.
“The acquisition of Loc Performance Products proves that we are consistently focusing on success in the USA and want to expand our share of the large market volume,” he commented.
He also pointed out that Loc Performance Products already has a “sustainable business model with robust organic growth” and the capacity to deliver targeted orders in the U.S.
Rheinmetall first announced the acquisition in August.
Rheinmetall’s XM30 Combat Vehicle
The transaction also supports the German company’s work with the U.S. Army on the XM30 Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle program. In 2023, the military service awarded American Rheinmetall Vehicles a contract for Phase 3 and 4 of the program to build prototypes of its Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle.
The combat vehicle has a modular design and open architecture, allowing the U.S. Army to customize the technology and meet mission requirements.
American Rheinmetall Vehicles is working on the OMFV with Team Lynx, which also includes Allison Transmission, Anduril Industries, L3Harris Technologies, RTX and Textron Systems.
