Rheinmetall to buy military vehicle parts maker Loc Performance in $950 million deal

(Reuters) - Rheinmetall would buy U.S.-based military vehicle parts maker Loc Performance in a $950 million deal, the German defense group said on Tuesday.

Michigan-based Loc is an original equipment manufacturer for the U.S. Army's military ground vehicle track systems.

Loc's acquisition would expand Rheinmetall's industrial base in the United States, as it aims for high-volume major orders for the U.S. Army vehicle XM30 and common tactical truck programs worth over $60 billion, the company said in a statement.

Rheinmetall believes that Loc Performance’s current manufacturing capabilities are capable of meeting the critical production requirements of the two programs.

Loc makes track systems, rubber and armor products and fabricated structures for military, agricultural, construction, mining, oil and gas, locomotive and mass transportation vehicles.

(Reporting by Aatreyee Dasgupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)