Arms Maker Rheinmetall to Take Hit From Germany's Scrapped Frigate Program

By Mauro Orru

Germany's Rheinmetall said its order intake would take a hit after Berlin scrapped a project to build its biggest military ship since the end of World War II, a setback for the arms maker that had hoped to bring in billions from F126 frigates.

The group said orders would be in a low double-digit euro billion amount level in the second quarter compared to a prior forecast of 20 billion euros ($22.76 billion) due to the cancellation of the F126 program. The downgrade comes despite strong momentum for Rheinmetall, which continues to secure orders from governments of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as they seek to replenish their stockpiles of weapons.

The company said it was assessing whether the F126 program cancellation would affect full-year guidance, and that it would provide more details when it reports second-quarter earnings on Aug. 6, though it projected a hit of up to 300 million euros on annual revenue if it fails to mitigate the impact.

Berlin said last month that it had opted not to pursue an order for six F126 frigates and would instead purchase eight MEKO A-200 frigates from German shipbuilder TKMS.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 02, 2026 12:21 ET (16:21 GMT)