„We have taken some bold decisions to improve the performance of the security and defence industry in Lithuania, from facilitating the ability to manufacture our own products for European defence to making it easier to develop major projects. Rheinmetall’s ammunition plant and other foreign and Lithuanian companies are already benefiting from these changes. We are open to cooperation and welcoming new potential investors to our country,“ Armonaitė said.
Leonardo is a leading global Aerospace, Defence and Security (AD&S) company. It plays an important role in major international strategic programmes and is a trusted technology partner for institutions and companies.
„We are particularly proud of the opportunity given to us by Minister of Economy and Innovation Aušrinė Armonaitė to illustrate Leonardo’s technological and production capabilities, both military and civilian, to the Lithuanian government,“ Leonardo President Stefano Pontecorvo stressed. „I hope that fruitful cooperation will result from this meeting.“
Leonardo employs over 53,000 people worldwide. Last year, Leonardo generated revenues of EUR 15.3 billion and new orders of EUR 17.9 billion.
The Ministry of the Economy and Innovation is working hard to attract more foreign investment to Lithuania and strengthen the defence and security industry. One of the initiatives is the drafting of amendments to the laws relevant to the Lithuanian defence and security industry, which propose to remove excessive requirements for the development of the sector and to avoid dependence on foreign suppliers by reducing restrictions on the production of armaments.
The Seimas also approved the ministry’s proposal to simplify the procedures related to territorial planning, land parcel formation and construction for large-scale projects aimed at ensuring the urgent needs of national security and defence.
Previously, the indicative timeframe within which the necessary preparatory processes for a large-scale production project to meet the urgent needs of national security and defence could be carried out in Lithuania prior to the start of construction of production facilities was approximately 2-2.5 years. The amendments reduce this period to an estimated six months.
In addition, on the initiative of the Ministry, the restriction on defence activities in Lithuania’s free economic zones (FEZs) has been removed. This will encourage companies to expand their activities and create good jobs.