Rheinmetall Commences Industrial-Scale Legacy Munitions Disposal at Bavaria Facility

Technical Summary

Rheinmetall AG has acquired a 41-hectare former Bundeswehr depot site at Zusamaltheim (near Dillingen an der Donau), Bavaria, and commenced conversion to an industrial-scale conventional ammunition demilitarisation facility. The site comprises 32 earth-covered storage bunkers with a combined capacity of up to 900 tonnes Net Explosive Quantity (NEQ), classified as Hazard Division 1.1 (HD 1.1) — mass explosion hazard — under IATG 10.10 (Demilitarisation and Destruction of Conventional Ammunition) and NATO AASTP-1 (NATO Guidelines for the Storage of Military Ammunition and Explosives). Operations were scheduled to commence in early 2026, with the facility serving as Rheinmetall’s primary demilitarisation hub for legacy ordnance from Bundeswehr and NATO force stockpiles [1][2].

The munition types anticipated for processing encompass the full spectrum of legacy conventional ordnance: artillery shells (calibres 75 mm through 210 mm), aerial bombs (50 kg to 1,000 kg class), sea mines, anti-personnel and anti-tank land mines, mortar rounds (60 mm to 120 mm), and small arms ammunition. Explosive fills present across this inventory include conventional high explosives — TNT (trinitrotoluene), Amatol (TNT/ammonium nitrate mixtures), and picric acid (Lyddite/Melinite/Shimose) — as well as composite fills and incendiary payloads including white phosphorus (WP). The heterogeneity of fills and munition types necessitates multiple demilitarisation process lines and item-specific safety procedures [3].

A critical factor driving the urgency of this programme is the chemical degradation state of WWI- and WWII-era munitions. TNT exudation — the migration of liquid TNT to the surface of cast charges through crystallographic voids — reduces structural integrity and creates sensitised surface layers. Picric acid-filled munitions present an acute hazard: picric acid reacts with metal casings (iron, copper, zinc) to form metallic picrates, which are significantly more sensitive to friction, impact, and heat than the parent compound. White phosphorus payloads in smoke and incendiary munitions pose spontaneous ignition risk upon exposure to air during any breaching or disassembly operation. These degradation mechanisms collectively elevate the hazard classification of aged munitions beyond their original design parameters [3][4].

Analysis of Effects

On-Site Storage and Quantity Distance Requirements

At 900 tonnes NEQ classified HD 1.1, the Zusamaltheim facility represents a significant Potential Explosion Site (PES) under AASTP-1. For this NEQ, the Inhabited Building Distance (IBD) for HD 1.1 mass-detonating munitions exceeds 2,000 metres — the minimum separation distance required between the PES and any inhabited building or public traffic route. The 41-hectare site footprint and its location on a former military depot suggest that existing QD separation distances were originally engineered for explosive storage; however, confirmation that current land-use planning around the site remains compatible with AASTP-1 IBD requirements has not been published [4].

Subsea Legacy Munitions

An estimated 1.6 million tonnes of legacy munitions lie on the North Sea and Baltic Sea seabed — comprising dumped artillery shells, sea mines, aerial bombs, and chemical munitions from both World Wars. Corrosion of ferrous casings over 80–110 years has initiated leaching of explosive compounds and their degradation products (principally TNT, RDX, and HMX breakdown metabolites including 2-amino-4,6-dinitrotoluene and 4-amino-2,6-dinitrotoluene) into the marine environment. These compounds exhibit documented ecotoxicity to marine organisms and bioaccumulate in benthic food chains [5].

Offshore disposal presents a binary operational choice: in-situ detonation versus recovery-and-destroy. In-situ underwater detonation, while expedient, generates significant environmental consequences — lethal blast overpressure zones for marine mammals (cetaceans are particularly vulnerable to underwater shock waves), sediment dispersal releasing contaminated material into the water column, and potential secondary detonation of adjacent munitions in dump sites. Recovery-and-destroy operations using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) or diver-led teams are slower and more costly but enable controlled destruction at designated facilities such as Zusamaltheim [5][6].

Demilitarisation Methodologies

Industrial-scale demilitarisation of conventional ammunition typically employs one or more of four principal methods: open burning/open detonation (OB/OD), contained detonation chambers, reverse engineering and mechanical disassembly, and chemical neutralisation. OB/OD remains the most widely used method globally but faces increasing regulatory restriction in the European Union due to atmospheric emissions and groundwater contamination risk. Contained detonation chambers (such as the Dynasafe or DAVINCH systems) offer controlled fragmentation and emissions capture. Mechanical disassembly — washout of explosive fill followed by separate treatment of energetic material and metal components — enables materials recovery but requires item-specific tooling. Chemical neutralisation using alkaline hydrolysis or supercritical water oxidation is applicable to certain explosive fills but is not universally suitable for mixed or degraded charges [3][6].

Stascheit GmbH Acquisition

In April 2025, Rheinmetall acquired Stascheit GmbH, an ammunition recovery company based in Gardelegen, Saxony-Anhalt, specialising in the detection, evaluation, recovery, and destruction of explosive ordnance. Stascheit’s operational capability spans both onshore unexploded ordnance (UXO) clearance and offshore explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) projects. This acquisition provides Rheinmetall with an integrated capability chain: offshore/onshore recovery (Stascheit) feeding into industrial-scale destruction (Zusamaltheim) — a vertically integrated demilitarisation model not previously available at this scale in Germany [1][2].

Personnel and Safety Considerations

Personnel engaged in demilitarisation operations at Zusamaltheim must hold qualifications compliant with IATG 10.10 requirements for ammunition disposal, supplemented by national Ammunition Technical Officer (ATO) certification under German federal law. The German Sprengstoffgesetz (Explosives Act) and associated Sprengstoffverordnung (Explosives Ordinance) impose specific licensing requirements for the handling, storage, and destruction of explosive materials, including mandatory appointment of a verantwortliche Person (responsible person) with demonstrated competence in explosive ordnance operations [3][7].

Personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements for handling degraded munitions exceed standard ammunition handling protocols. Sensitised munitions containing exuded TNT, crystallised picric acid salts, or exposed white phosphorus demand anti-static clothing, face shields rated for fragmentation protection, respiratory protection against toxic fume inhalation, and in the case of WP munitions, fire-retardant overgarments and immediate water-suppression capability. The UK equivalent framework under DSA 03.OME (Defence Safety Authority — Ordnance, Munitions and Explosives) provides comparable personnel competence and PPE requirements for analogous operations [3][7].

Environmental monitoring is mandated under AASTP-6 (Environmental Assessment of Munitions Compounds) and German federal environmental protection law. Groundwater monitoring wells, soil sampling programmes, and ambient air quality stations must be established and maintained throughout the operational life of the facility, with particular attention to heavy metals (lead, mercury, arsenic from primer compositions) and explosive compound migration into groundwater [6].

Emergency response capability on-site must comply with AASTP-1 Chapter 7, requiring dedicated fire and emergency response teams with specialist training in explosive ordnance incident response. For sensitised munitions containing degraded explosives — particularly those exhibiting picrate crystal formation or TNT exudation — low-order detonation techniques using shaped donor charges may be required to avoid sympathetic detonation of adjacent stored items during emergency render-safe procedures [4].

Data Gaps

Source reliability: B–2 (Manufacturer official source, corroborated by defence trade press).

Disclosure: This analysis is AI-assisted and based on open-source material. No classified information. For professional use only.