Manufacturer catalog

VMZ Sopot

VMZ Sopot is a Bulgarian state-owned defense manufacturer in Sopot that produces ammunition, rocket grenades, unguided rockets, antitank missiles, fuzes, and other ordnance for domestic and export customers.

5 weapons

VMZ Sopot is the trading name of Vazovski Mashinostroitelni Zavodi EAD, a long-running Bulgarian defense enterprise based at Sopot in Plovdiv Province. VMZ describes its business as defense-product manufacturing for domestic and international markets, and Bulgaria's Ministry of Economy and Industry has described the company as the country's largest state-owned military enterprise.

Its production profile covers artillery ammunition, mortar ammunition, MLRS ammunition, unguided aircraft rockets, RPG-7V ammunition, SPG-9 and 2A28 ammunition, rocket grenades for disposable launchers, hand grenades, fuzes, and antitank guided missiles.

VMZ also operates specialized manufacturing divisions, an open testing ground, and quality-control systems for ammunition and explosive production. Its testing infrastructure covers RPG-7, RPG-22, BM-21, SPG-9, 2A28, artillery, and mortar ammunition, while its assembly factory handles explosive and pyrotechnic compounds.

In 2025, VMZ and Rheinmetall announced a joint venture for artillery-shell and energetic-material production in the Sopot region, with planned production of projectile casings from 2027 and energetic materials from 2028.

ammunitionrocket grenadesunguided rocketsantitank guided missilesordnance production

Notable Systems

RPG-22, Disposable shoulder-fired anti-tank rocket launcher, Infantry Weapons

RPG-22

Disposable shoulder-fired anti-tank rocket launcher

Disposable anti-tank rocket grenade listed by VMZ with 72.5 mm caliber, 2.7 kg round weight, 400 mm armor penetration, and a 150 m direct-fire range.

Sources: manufacturer
PG-7VM rocket-propelled grenade, RPG-7 HEAT rocket-propelled grenade round, Munitions

PG-7VM rocket-propelled grenade

RPG-7 HEAT rocket-propelled grenade round

RPG-7V-compatible PG-7VM round listed by VMZ with a PG-7M anti-tank grenade, 40 mm grenade caliber, 72.5 mm warhead caliber, and 300 mm armor penetration.

Sources: manufacturer
120 mm round with thermobaric bomb, 120 mm thermobaric mortar round, Munitions

120 mm round with thermobaric bomb

120 mm thermobaric mortar round

Bulgarian VMZ 120 mm thermobaric mortar round documented by a VMZ product sheet and linked to the published mortar-ammunition record.

Sources: manufacturer, specs

Manufacturer History

  1. Company origin

    VMZ says its history dates to 9 June 1936, placing the Sopot plant among Bulgaria's long-established defense industrial sites.

    Sources: background

  2. Rheinmetall joint venture

    VMZ and Rheinmetall announced a Bulgarian joint venture for artillery shells and energetic materials, with Rheinmetall holding 51 percent and VMZ holding 49 percent.

    Sources: background

Website links
Official websiteAbout usProduction: RPG-22 rocket anti-tank grenadeRheinmetall joint venture announcementBulgarian ministry VMZ visit

VMZ Sopot is a state-owned Bulgarian defense enterprise; the public English site covers current production, while ownership and historical context are also supported by Bulgarian official and press sources.

Manufacturer Sources

  • VMZ Sopot official home pagePublisher: VMZ Sopot | Note: Supports the manufacturer name, Sopot location, current production categories, and the company's defense-manufacturing role. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • About usPublisher: VMZ Sopot | Note: Supports the company background, factory structure, testing ground, and quality-control context for the Sopot enterprise. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • 90 years of VMZPublisher: VMZ Sopot | Note: Supports the company's historical claim that its origin dates to 9 June 1936 and that it has a long-running Sopot defense-industrial history. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • RPG-22 rocket anti-tank grenade with PG-22 anti-tank grenadePublisher: VMZ Sopot | Note: Supports the RPG-22 product family, direct manufacturer context for VMZ Sopot, and the RPG-22 technical characteristics used in the notable-system note. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • PG-7VM round with PG-7M anti-tank grenadePublisher: VMZ Sopot | Note: Supports VMZ Sopot's PG-7VM RPG-7 ammunition product and the published technical characteristics used for the notable-system note. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • VMZ 120 mm Thermobaric Mortar RoundPublisher: VMZ Sopot | Note: Supports VMZ Sopot manufacturer context and technical data for the 120 mm round with thermobaric bomb notable system. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • The military plant in Sopot: Not only the company, but also Bulgaria is being discreditedPublisher: Radio Bulgaria / Bulgarian National Radio | Note: Supports state-owned ownership context for VMZ Sopot and its 2025 public corporate profile. | Accessed: 2026-06-21
  • President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen Visits VMZ-SopotPublisher: Ministry of Economy, Investments and Industry of Bulgaria | Note: Supports VMZ Sopot as Bulgaria's largest state-owned military enterprise under the ministry and gives 2025 production-capacity context. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Rheinmetall and VMZ establish joint venture in BulgariaPublisher: Rheinmetall | Note: Supports the 2025 joint venture milestone involving VMZ Sopot and the planned artillery-shell production on the Sopot site. | Accessed: 2026-07-11

Produced weapons

Category

Infantry Weapons

Portable weapons used by soldiers and small units.

1/1
RPG-22, Disposable shoulder-fired anti-tank rocket launcher, Infantry Weapons1979 Soviet-Afghan War, 2011 Syrian Civil War +2 moreRPG-22Disposable shoulder-fired anti-tank rocket launcherBuilt in: Soviet Union / Russia / BulgariaThe RPG-22 Netto is a Soviet disposable anti-tank rocket launcher developed as a larger-caliber successor to the RPG-18, firing a 72.5 mm HEAT rocket from a telescoping aluminum-and-fiberglass tube. Open-source documentation places it in Soviet-Afghan War service, Islamic State inventories in Syria and Iraq, and both Ukrainian and Russian-linked hands during the Russia-Ukraine War.

Category

Munitions

Standalone missiles, bombs, rockets, torpedoes, and guided or unguided explosive payloads.

4/4
PG-7VM rocket-propelled grenade, RPG-7 HEAT rocket-propelled grenade round, Munitions1984 Kurdish-Turkish Conflict, 2014 War Against the Islamic State +2 morePG-7VM rocket-propelled grenadeRPG-7 HEAT rocket-propelled grenade roundBuilt in: Soviet Union / Russia / Bulgaria / Czech Republic / Romania and other RPG-7 ammunition producersThe PG-7VM is an RPG-7-compatible high-explosive anti-tank round built around the smaller PG-7M-class shaped-charge grenade. VMZ Sopot and STV Group publish closely aligned data for a roughly 1.97 kg round with a 300 m direct-fire range, 500 m sighting range, and about 300 mm armor penetration; conflict evidence documents the round in PKK, Islamic State, and Iraqi insurgent stocks, usually as seized or photographed ammunition rather than a named firing incident.
PG-7VL rocket-propelled grenade, RPG-7-compatible HEAT rocket-propelled grenade round, Munitions2014 War Against the Islamic State, 1984 Kurdish-Turkish ConflictPG-7VL rocket-propelled grenadeRPG-7-compatible HEAT rocket-propelled grenade roundBuilt in: Soviet Union / Russia / Bulgaria and other RPG-7 ammunition producersThe PG-7VL is a Soviet-origin RPG-7-compatible high-explosive anti-tank round, also associated with the Luch designation and PG-7L grenade. Russian and Bulgarian product sources describe a 93 mm warhead, roughly 2.6 kg round weight, 300 m sighting or effective range, and about 500 mm armor penetration; conflict documentation places PG-7VL projectiles in Islamic State and PKK weapons stocks rather than tying them to a named firing incident.