UK delivers first British-made artillery barrels to Ukraine under £61M contract
The UK has delivered the first four British-made 105mm and 155mm artillery barrel forgings to Ukraine under a £61 million contract with Sheffield Forgemasters, awarded to BAE Systems in 2025. Up to 150 barrels will be forged in Yorkshire and finished in Ukraine, marking the first such UK production in nearly two decades. Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis highlighted the strategic importance for Ukraine’s defense and UK industrial capacity, with the program supporting hundreds of jobs and over 60 supply-chain businesses.
Editorial responsibility
- No named human review is recorded for this page.
- Reports are grouped by semantic similarity and deterministic rules. Language models may assist titles, summaries, translation and cross-source analysis; the page itself is projected from evidence records.
- Source updates only; analysis pending
Analysis pending
Cross-source coverage
Wire timeline
UK delivers first batch of artillery barrels to Ukraine under new manufacturing deal
The UK has delivered the first four British-made 105mm and 155mm artillery barrel forgings to Ukraine as part of a £61 million ($82.2 million) contract awarded to BAE Systems by the UK Ministry of Defence in 2025. Manufactured by Sheffield Forgemasters, the barrels will be finished and integrated in Ukraine to support Ukrainian artillery units. The program could produce up to 150 barrels, marking the first time in nearly two decades that such defense industrial activity has occurred in the UK. The exact Ukrainian systems to receive the barrels remain unclear, but Ukraine operates UK-donated L118 105mm guns and AS90 155mm howitzers. The Sheffield site appears heavily reliant on Ukrainian contracts, as the British Army is phasing out similar systems.
UK delivers first batch of artillery barrels to Ukraine under new manufacturing deal
The UK has delivered the first four British-made 105mm and 155mm artillery barrel forgings to Ukraine as part of a £61 million ($82.2 million) contract awarded to BAE Systems by the UK Ministry of Defence in 2025. The barrels, forged by Sheffield Forgemasters and finished in Ukraine, are intended to support Ukrainian artillery capability while restarting UK defense manufacturing after nearly two decades. Up to 150 barrels may be produced under the agreement. The specific Ukrainian artillery systems to receive the barrels remain unclear, but Ukraine operates UK-donated L118 105mm light guns and AS90 155mm self-propelled howitzers. The Sheffield site also produces M777 155mm towed artillery components, though the British Army does not plan to operate the M777 due to mobility concerns and is phasing out its 105mm L118 by 2030. The site appears heavily reliant on Ukrainian contracts for its business.
UK delivers first batch of artillery barrels to Ukraine under new manufacturing deal
The UK has delivered the first four British-made 105mm and 155mm artillery barrel forgings to Ukraine as part of a £61 million ($82.2 million) contract awarded to BAE Systems by the UK Ministry of Defence in 2025. The barrels, manufactured by Sheffield Forgemasters, will be finished and integrated in Ukraine to support Ukrainian artillery units. The program could produce up to 150 barrels, marking the first time in nearly two decades that such defense industrial activity has occurred in the UK. The exact Ukrainian artillery systems to receive the barrels remain unclear, but Ukraine operates UK-donated L118 105mm guns and AS90 155mm self-propelled howitzers. The Sheffield site appears heavily reliant on Ukraine contracts, as the British Army is phasing out similar systems.
Show 2 older updatesHide older updates
First British-made artillery barrels delivered to Ukraine under £61 million contract
The first British-made artillery barrels in nearly two decades are being delivered to Ukraine under a £61 million contract with Sheffield Forgemasters. The 150 barrels, in 105mm and 155mm calibres, are forged in Yorkshire before being sent to Ukraine for finishing and integration. The first four barrels have been shipped as development forgings. Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis visited the site, highlighting the role of the barrels in supporting Ukraine and creating skilled UK jobs. The work is part of a wider £298 billion Defence Investment Plan and builds on BAE Systems' new £25 million artillery factory in Sheffield. Sheffield Forgemasters, nationalised by the MoD in 2021, is also investing £1.3 billion in new forging and machining facilities. The return of domestic barrel forging addresses a long-identified gap in UK defence industrial capacity, accelerated by the war in Ukraine.
First British-made artillery barrels delivered to Ukraine under £61 million contract
The first British-made artillery barrels in nearly two decades are being delivered to Ukraine under a £61 million contract with Sheffield Forgemasters. The 150 barrels, in 105mm and 155mm calibers, are forged in Yorkshire and sent to Ukraine for finishing and integration. The contract, awarded by the UK government to BAE Systems, supports hundreds of jobs in Sheffield and over 60 businesses across the UK supply chain. Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis visited the site, emphasizing the strategic importance of reindustrializing for national security and support for Ukraine. Sheffield Forgemasters, nationalized by the MoD in 2021, is undergoing a £1.3 billion recapitalisation program. The production addresses a long-identified gap in UK defence industrial base, highlighted by the war in Ukraine where artillery barrel wear is a constant issue.