The Ministry of Defence will definitely rent around 120,000 m² of production space from VDL in Borne. A number of agreements for this were signed this week by Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans.
VDL Groep is entering into a strategic partnership with Defence. The parties conclude a ten-year agreement for the lease of around 120,000 m² of production space at the VDL location Borne. This space will be used to increase the Dutch production capacity of defence equipment. In this way, Defence aims to strengthen the strategic autonomy of the Netherlands.
Follow-up to previous agreement
The Ministry of Defence entered into a rental agreement with VDL Groep in Borne back in July . This gave Defence immediate access to 27,500 m2 of production space. This agreement was then signed by Minister Brekelmans and VDL CEO Willem van der Leegte. It was then already announced that around 120,000 m2 of production space would become available before the end of the year. So this step has now been taken.
Defence plans to use the site for various projects. Previous examples include the production of military drones and both maintenance and modernisation of defence vehicles.
Agreements with three parties
Ministry of Defence orders have also been placed with Estonian companies Milrem Robotics and Dutch Tulip Tech. A Letter of Intent has also been signed with the also Dutch Deltaquad. Production agreements have also been signed with these three companies by VDL Groep.
Milrem Robotics will produce unmounted tracked vehicles that can transport wounded soldiers at VDL in Borne. Tulip Tech will produce batteries at the site to extend the flight time of drones. Deltaquad plans to produce unmanned and unarmed drones at Borne.
'Crucial for Limburg economy'
Provincial Executive member of the Province of Limburg Stephan Satijn: "The agreements between Defence, VDL and the companies fit seamlessly with the Limburg Defence Agenda and the agreement of intent that we as the Province of Limburg have concluded with VDL. After all, a successful completion of the company location in Born is crucial for the Limburg economy and the manufacturing industry in particular. The agreements that have been concluded give a boost to employment in Limburg, the build-up of knowledge and the innovative capacity of our province. Looking to the future, we will continue to work with Defence and other partners to further implement the Limburg Defence Agenda, the development of the VDL site and projects focusing on industry, manufacturing, innovation and logistics."
For VDL Groep, the signed agreements are good news. As recently as March, the company reported that 2024 was financially weaker than 2023. For instance, the company scaled down production at VDL Nedcar, VDL faced material shortages and therefore had to postpone the delivery of buses, market developments stagnated and the company saw its costs rise. The lease agreement with Defence is therefore an important boost for the company.
