Israel signs NIS 600 million Elbit agreement for artillery training facility

Israel's Defense Ministry and the IDF have signed an agreement with Elbit Systems worth approximately NIS 600 million to establish a dedicated training facility for the Artillery Corps. Running for 15 years, the agreement covers training for the new Ro'em self-propelled howitzer and Lahav rocket launcher systems, known internationally as SIGMA and PULS.

Elbit will develop and supply advanced technological training infrastructure under the agreement, which also includes instruction, maintenance and logistical support. Zeev Landau, the Defense Ministry's deputy director-general and head of its Directorate of Production and Procurement, said the deal reflected the ministry's strategy of improving operational readiness while supporting Israeli industry.

The Ro'em, marketed internationally as the SIGMA 155, carries a 155 mm howitzer on a highly mobile 10x10 truck chassis. The ministry chose to procure it in 2017, with development starting in 2019. In 2021, the decision was made that it would enter IDF service under the Ro'em name. Its first unit formally declared it operational in late 2025 after extensive testing and deployment in varied operational environments.

Automated ammunition loading and gun positioning allow the Ro'em to operate with three soldiers, a commander, gunner and driver. That compares with eight personnel for the US-made M109 Doher, an older self-propelled howitzer that remains in IDF service. The Ro'em can fire six to eight shells per minute, more than double its predecessor's rate, and discharge its first shell less than 60 seconds after stopping.

Testing has shown a reported accuracy deviation of approximately 0.7%. Each howitzer has its own navigation and fire-control equipment, enabling operation without a separate command-and-control vehicle. An armored driver's cabin provides crew protection, and the system is designed to satisfy IDF operational requirements for at least the next 50 years.

Elbit also sells the howitzer internationally. Foreign sources report that Singapore has purchased the Ro'em, while Denmark, Thailand and the Philippines have bought an earlier version. Thailand's wider military modernization plans include artillery acquisitions. In October, Israeli manufacturer IWI also announced delivery of its ARBEL anti-drone system to Thailand.

The training agreement follows a separate Elbit contract announced on October 19, worth $235 million, to supply PULS rocket launchers and EXTRA-MR rockets to an unnamed European country. The company also announced plans in October for a production and maintenance facility in Sweden as part of its expanding international operations.

Beyond its land weapons business, Elbit announced on October 20 that it had acquired Canadian underwater drone manufacturer International Submarine Engineering, extending its maritime defense capabilities.

Boaz Cohen, general manager of Elbit Systems' Land Division and IMI, said the artillery school and training framework would help Artillery Corps soldiers keep the corps' fire capabilities at the highest level of readiness.