Romania wants to deploy Ukrainian defense plants

The Association of Defense Industry Enterprises of Ukraine agrees to produce explosives, drones, and armored vehicles in Romania.

Viorel Manole, director of the Romanian association of defense companies PATROMIL, shared this with Defense Romania.

According to Manole, negotiations are underway between Patromil and the Ukrainian Association to build several plants in Romania.

“We are discussing a drone manufacturing plant in Tecuci, for which we can use European funds, as well as funds from Romania and Ukraine,” he said.

He clarified that these are dual-purpose drones that can be used for civilian purposes, such as agriculture, in addition to direct military tasks, such as border patrol.

This obviously refers to the reconnaissance drones of one of the Association’s members. It includes such companies as DeViRo, UkrSpecSystems, Skyeton, and a number of lesser-known ones.

He also said that another area of cooperation with Ukrainian companies could be the production of armored vehicles with a 4×4 wheel formula.

The only armored vehicle manufacturer in the Association is Ukrainian Armor, which produces Novator 2 vehicles and recently introduced Varta 2.

However, the “icing on the cake,” as Viorel Manole himself notes, should be the construction of a TNT plant in Romania.

“The Ukrainian TNT plant is located in the territory occupied by Russia. The demand for TNT on the Ukrainian market and beyond is huge. In addition, we have big problems with it ourselves, as Făgăraş is no longer in operation,” explains Patromil’s director.

Presumably, the Romanian association plans to restore the Manole nitrocellulose plant, which specialized in the production of gunpowder and explosives, as part of the project.

It is worth noting that Fabrica de Pulberi SA has not produced explosives since 2004. The company’s turnover, which is currently not actually producing products, amounted to $2.1 million in 2023.