By Sabine Siebold
BERLIN, Sept 9 (Reuters) - U.S. defence startup Covenant plans to begin mass production of low-cost cruise missiles in Germany in early 2027 to meet demand from European countries looking to procure long-range weapons to counter what they see as a growing threat from Russia.
Covenant said it had secured one contract for its Anthem missile in Europe so far and is in talks with other potential customers, but declined to specify the countries. It expects first deliveries of the ground-launched
missile in early 2027.
"Our aim is to reach 5,000 by 2028, or at least (a) run rate (of) 5,000 during 2028," Covenant co-founder and CEO Michael Kaufman told Reuters in an interview, referring to its production facility in the eastern German state of Saxony.
Germany and Britain are developing a long-range missile with a range exceeding 2,000 kilometres, effectively reaching Moscow, as both try to end their defence reliance on the United States. Berlin's only standoff weapon so far is the Taurus cruise missile, of which Germany has some 600 in stock.
As European trust in Washington shrinks and calls for weapons free of U.S. components grow, Covenant said it sources most parts of its Europe-built Anthem missiles on the continent.
"The supply chain (for the Saxony facility) has no reliance on the U.S. ... Less than 5% of the bill of materials comes from anywhere outside of Europe, and our goal is to get that down to zero," Kaufman said.
Anthem could offer a fresh option to countries seeking to expand long-range inventories that currently consist of a limited number of costly missiles deemed too small to counter the huge arsenals of a country such as Russia.
Anthem not only solves the problem of mass, but also offers a more affordable option compared to weapons such as Raytheon's Tomahawk, with a price tag per missile in the "mid-six figures", Covenant said.
U.S. defence giant Raytheon is planning to ramp up production of the Tomahawk missile to 1,000 units per year from a current annual rate of 60 to 90 missiles.
Covenant said it is also working on a naval version of the Anthem missile, which has a payload exceeding 200 kilogrammes for striking targets both on the ground and at sea.
Covenant did not disclose the range of Anthem, but said it was well-suited for the European theatre.
"The way in which to win a war or deter your adversaries is to be able to have the depth and arsenal to sustain that conflict ... for days, weeks, or months on end," Covenant's President and Chief Growth Officer Abby Denburg told Reuters.
Kaufman estimated that Germany and other European countries would need tens of thousands of long-range missiles to tackle a distant adversary with a large territory.
(Reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Thomas Seythal and Alexander Smith)
