Deputy minister: Ukraine can produce 150,000 drones per month
Ukraine has the capacity to produce 150,000 drones every month, and may be able to produce 2 million drones by the end of the year, Strategic Industries Deputy Minister Hanna Hvozdiar said on air on March 5.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said during his year-end press conference on Dec. 19, 2023, that Ukraine is ramping up domestic drone production and is on track to produce one million drones in 2024.
"Ukraine is already well past the million mark in terms of production," Hvozdiar said.
The domestic market could benefit from additional funding, which would further increase production capacity, according to Hvozdiar.
More than 200 Ukrainian companies are involved in developing drones, of which almost 60 have received orders from the government, Hvozdiar said.
The government also has "quite ambitious plans" for developing the domestic production of drone components, which until now have been primarily imported from abroad, Hvozdiar said.
Zelensky signed a decree on Feb. 6 that created a separate branch of Ukraine's Armed Forces dedicated to drones.
Drones have "proven their effectiveness in battles on land, in the sky, and at sea," Zelensky said.
On top of domestic drone production, Ukraine's partners plan to supply Kyiv with 1 million drones in 2024, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said at a press conference on Feb. 15.
Kateryna Hodunova
