Israel ordered $760M in ammunition from Elbit Systems in 2023

JERUSALEM — The Israeli Ministry of Defense ordered approximately $760 million in ammunition in a series of contracts throughout 2023 with the Israeli defense giant Elbit Systems, according to a company statement. Elbit Systems did not specify the types of ammunition that were ordered.

Many of the ammunition orders, announced Tuesday, are part of a rush of Israeli procurement deals from local companies in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

The IDF had already begun to purchase ammunition from Elbit Systems prior to the war, with an order for $60 million in 155mm ammunition in August 2023. But by November the Ministry of Defense said that it had made thousands of purchases worth $1.64 billion from local companies, part of the government’s focus on buying “Blue and White,” the colors of the Israeli flag.

Though the $760 million in ammo contracts were ordered in 2023, they’re still in progress as Elbit said they will be performed over two years.

“As previously reported by the Company, since the beginning of the Swords of Iron war [the Gaza conflict], Elbit Systems has experienced a material increased demand for its products and solutions from the Israel Ministry of Defense compared to the demand levels prior to the war,” the company said.

Elbit noted that further developments were “difficult to predict” but said that increased demand for Elbit’s products could continue to “generate material additional orders.” The Israeli website CTech noted that the Israeli Ministry of Defense had also requested to delay the closure of a factory used by Elbit Systems in central Israel, “citing the urgent need for increased armament production for the IDF.”

Elbit acquired the Israel’s government owned IMI in 2018, which is a major producer of ammunition. Elbit makes ammunition for tanks, artillery, mortars and other platforms. Elbit Systems Land division also offers customers smaller caliber ammunition, such as 5.56mm and 7.62mm rounds.

The Israel Defense Forces have now been fighting for seven and a half months in a multi-front war that not only including fighting in Gaza but also deploying divisions of troops in the West Bank and northern Israel. The IDF reportedly thinks the war could take another six months to grind down Hamas battalions that remain a threat in Gaza.

Beyond ammo, just last month the Ministry of Defense put out a tender for “tens of thousands” of small arms to be acquired from Israeli companies. These include AR type rifles as well as the Israeli Tavor rifle.

The Ministry of Defense also ordered $100 million in electrical systems and subsystems for tanks and armored personnel carriers from IMCO, the Israeli company said on May 6. These include “advanced video management systems, power management systems, and harnesses, for armored fighting vehicles,” the company said.

The systems will go on Merkava tanks, as well as the Namer APC and the new Eitan APC the IDF began using at the beginning of the war. The systems will be delivered over six years.