(Corrects paragraph 7 to specify discussions are ongoing and do not involve PAC-3 production at this stage)
April 13 (Reuters) - Germany's Rheinmetall and Destinus, a Netherlands-based European defence technology company, have agreed to establish a joint venture to supply advanced missile systems, the companies said on Monday.
The venture is set to be named Rheinmetall Destinus Strike Systems and will be set up in the second half of the year.
"We are combining Rheinmetall's production capacities and experience in managing large-scale programs with Destinus's specific technology and system design," said Rheinmetall-chief Armin Papperger in a statement.
The constraint in Europe today is not demand but industrial capacity, said Mikhail Kokorich, co-founder and CEO of Destinus.
Rheinmetall and Destinus will hold 51% and 49% stakes, respectively.
Rheinmetall has been expanding its role in missile systems through air-defence integration and licensed production, integrating short-range interceptors into its Skynex and Skyranger platforms while pursuing a joint venture with Lockheed Martin .
Discussions are ongoing and do not involve Patriot PAC-3 production at this stage, according to a Lockheed Martin spokesperson.
(Reporting by Maria Rugamer, Editing by Friederike Heine, Linda Pasquini and Matt Scuffham)
