Britain resumes large-calibre gun barrel manufacturing after two decades

The facility, operated by German defense manufacturer Rheinmetall in Telford, manufactures barrels and breeches for 120mm and 155mm weapon systems, including the RCH 155 artillery platform.

British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting officially opened the facility alongside senior military and company officials on Thursday.

"Britain is back in the business of making the weapons that our Armed Forces need to defend the nation against our adversaries," he said in a statement.

According to the Ministry of Defence, Rheinmetall UK transformed the site from an empty facility into a fully operational production plant in just eight months after taking it over in autumn 2025.

The ministry said that the project forms part of a broader defence industrial partnership between Britain and Germany under the Trinity House Agreement signed in October 2024, aimed at strengthening bilateral defence cooperation and NATO's collective deterrence.

The British government has committed 298 billion pounds (about 400 billion U.S. dollars) to defense over four years under its Defence Investment Plan.

Earlier, it was reported that Britain will expand its use of artificial intelligence to protect government systems from cyberattacks and develop measures to respond to incidents involving autonomous AI agents.