Rheinmetall Telford Gun Hall Brings Tank Barrel Production Back to UK

Large-calibre gun barrel manufacturing has returned to Britain for the first time in around two decades after Rheinmetall officially opened its new gun hall in Telford, Shropshire. The UK Ministry of Defence highlighted the milestone on its official X account on 22 and 23 October 2026, describing a £60 million investment by Rheinmetall that will create 100 new jobs in the West Midlands.

From empty site to production in eight months

According to Rheinmetall, the site moved from an empty facility to operational manufacturing in eight months. Breech and breech-block production began in May 2026, followed by barrel production in June. Rheinmetall UK took over the Telford site in autumn 2025, and its British employees were trained at the company’s Unterlüß plant in Germany.

The ceremony was attended by Defence Secretary Wes Streeting, Chief of the General Staff General Sir Roly Walker and Rheinmetall AG chief executive Armin Papperger. Streeting described the eight-month transition as rapid reindustrialisation, while Papperger called the opening an important milestone for both the company and the UK.

Barrels for Challenger 3 and RCH 155

The gun hall will produce 120mm and 155mm barrels and breeches. Rheinmetall says the output will support platforms including the Challenger 3 main battle tank, while the MoD links the 155mm work to the RCH 155 wheeled howitzer and future artillery programmes. At peak, the plant is designed to deliver up to 245 barrels a year across both calibres.

Rheinmetall also plans to introduce British steel from Sheffield Forgemasters into production, a step that would deepen the domestic supply chain for one of the most demanding components in land warfare.

Sovereign capability and the Trinity House Agreement

The UK lost its domestic capacity to make large-calibre gun barrels in the mid-2010s, leaving the Army reliant on overseas suppliers. The Telford facility is presented by both London and Berlin as a flagship of the Trinity House Agreement, the UK–German defence cooperation pact signed in October 2024.

Rheinmetall says the gun hall is part of more than £200 million invested across its UK operations over the past five years, including work on the Boxer mechanised infantry vehicle and Challenger 3 through its Telford-based activities.

What comes next

Rheinmetall employs around 685 people in Telford, and the workforce at the gun hall is expected to grow as output rises. The company and the MoD say the facility will strengthen the UK’s sovereign industrial base and support wider NATO and European demand for artillery and tank barrels.

Featured image: Ministry of Defence / OGL v1.0, via Wikimedia Commons