The merger between KMW and Nexter, which was completed in 2015 to form the KNDS Group, can look forward to a successful 2019 financial year.
According to the Group, incoming orders amounted to EUR 4.375 billion in 2019, which corresponds to a significant increase on the previous year (2018: EUR 3.514 billion). The order backlog increased by 23.5% compared to 2018 and now stands at EUR 9.633 billion, with additional options and tranches of around EUR 4 billion. As reported, an order for more than 500 Boxer wheeled vehicles from the UK, the orders for Puma VJTF infantry fighting vehicles and Leopard 2 main battle tanks for the German Bundeswehr, as well as the Griffon and Jaguar for Belgium, Titus IMV wheeled vehicles for the Czech Republic and the Danish order for further Caesar artillery systems played a major role in this success. This also led to an increase in turnover, which amounted to EUR 2.539 billion in 2019 and was therefore significantly higher than in 2018 (EUR 2.245 billion). The number of employees had increased by 328 by the end of 2019, rising to 7,873.
As part of the results presentation, KMW and Nexter also provided an outlook on current business development. Accordingly, the integration of KMW and Nexter continues to progress well. This includes joint projects in the areas of main battle tanks, artillery, ammunition and armored vehicles. The key project is the EMBT (European Main Battle Tank), which consists of a German Leopard chassis and a French Leclerc turret and was presented as a demonstrator at the Eurosatory 2018 international arms fair. KNDS has continuously worked on the development and progress of the project to meet the market demand for short to medium-term availability. In addition, the development of the future main combat system Land, which is scheduled to enter service from 2035, has been driven forward. On 16 October 2019, the defence ministers of Germany and France made a clear commitment to the armaments project and the development of the MGCS. The consortium (ARGE) subsequently established in December 2019 by KMW, Nexter and Rheinmetall AG forms the industrial framework for the first MGCS contract, which was concluded in May of this year. The so-called System Architecture Design Study Phase 1 (SADS1) marks the beginning of the MGCS development process. The contract is the industrial starting signal for the first step towards one of the largest land system procurement projects in the history of Germany and France. The two main battle tank system houses Nexter and KMW will contribute their expertise to all aspects of the program. A major challenge for KNDS is the economic impact of the global pandemic. The aim remains to maintain customer and shareholder satisfaction, drive forward the integration of the Group and further develop the joint programs. Frank Haun and Stéphane Mayer, Co-CEO’s of KNDS: “The excellent KNDS key figures for 2019 show that we have achieved our goals. These results highlight the importance of combining the strengths of KMW and Nexter. KNDS is growing and we are well on our way to becoming the European market leader for military land systems. We therefore particularly welcome the success of the recent order intake from Europe.”
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