Defense Ministry Signs NIS 600 Million Deal for IDF Artillery Training Facility

Israel's Defense Ministry announced Monday a 15-year agreement worth approximately NIS 600 million with Elbit Systems to establish a dedicated Artillery Corps training facility. The project will prepare commanders and soldiers to operate the SIGMA self-propelled howitzer, known in Israel as Roa'em, and the PULS rocket launcher, known as Lahav. The ministry's Defense Procurement Directorate signed the agreement in cooperation with the IDF Ground Forces. Its Land Procurement Unit is leading the project, which covers development and delivery of training infrastructure alongside instruction, maintenance and comprehensive logistics support. The planned facility will include physical infrastructure, advanced classrooms, driving simulators and mission simulators for the artillery platforms. Zeev Landau, the ministry's deputy director general and head of the procurement directorate, said the agreement supports operational readiness while strengthening Israeli industry and providing long-term technological and logistical support. Boaz Cohen, executive vice president and general manager of Elbit Systems Land, said the company developed the Ground Forces' training array to provide efficient artillery training and sustain readiness. The ministry described the facility as preparation for the new platforms' full operational entry into service. It expects the training system to shorten qualification, improve professional proficiency and reduce resource use, budget demands and maintenance requirements on operational equipment. Those benefits are the ministry's stated aims for the project. The announcement did not identify the facility's location or provide an opening date.