Bundeswehr Security: 666M EUR in Private Security Contracts

The German military (Bundeswehr) can no longer guard its own facilities. Of the 275 barracks and military properties in Germany, nearly all are now protected by private security companies. The cost to the Bundeswehr for this protection: 666 million euros in 2024 alone, confirmed by the Federal Ministry of Defence. For 2025, the defence budget allocates 915 million euros — under the line item "facility security."

For the private security industry, this is a figure of real weight. It shows the scale of the market and how dependent public institutions have become on professional security services.

Why the Bundeswehr no longer guards its own bases

Two policy changes created this situation:

Suspension of conscription in 2011. Since then, the Bundeswehr has systematically lacked the conscripts who formerly handled basic tasks like base security. The Federal Authority for Infrastructure, Environment and Services of the Bundeswehr (BAIUDBw) cites personnel shortages as the primary reason.

The Soldier Working Hours Regulation of 2016. This lowered the standard working week for military personnel from 48 to 41 hours — an implementation of the EU Working Time Directive. The available personnel hours for internal guard duty shrank accordingly.

The result: existing military personnel are no longer sufficient for ongoing base security. The Bundeswehr now depends on the private security industry not as a supplement, but as a critical backbone.

Military base contracts: what they mean for security companies

Market volume

Spending on "facility security" in the defence budget has grown substantially in recent years:

This represents growth of over 50% in four years. For security companies, military base protection is not a niche business — it's a multi-billion-euro market in formation.

Personnel requirements

Protecting military installations requires security clearances and background checks that exceed standard licensing. Guards must hold the basic security license (Sachkundeprüfung nach §34a GewO), but military contracts impose additional vetting standards. Employees operate in sensitive security zones and face stricter scrutiny.

For security firms, this creates a bottleneck: not every employee qualifies for these contracts. Personnel selection becomes critical — especially when qualified security personnel are already in short supply across the industry.

Regional wage variation

Hourly rates for military base security vary significantly by region:

These differences reflect regional collective agreements in the security industry. Multi-regional tenders require careful wage calculation across different standards. For current wage tables by region, see our security industry wage overview.

What this means for the industry

First: the market continues to grow. Germany's strategic reorientation and the 100-billion-euro defence spending increase accelerate this trend. More facilities, higher security standards, larger budgets for external protection.

Second: requirements are rising. Military contracts demand complete documentation, background verification, and rapid incident reporting. Companies winning these contracts need auditable processes — not paper logbooks.

Third: competition for qualified personnel intensifies. The military base transition alone required recruiting 1,800 additional security personnel. Every employee assigned to military duty is no longer available on the open market.

How security companies qualify for military contracts

Large contracts like military base protection are awarded through public tender. Evaluation criteria go beyond price — documented quality, auditable processes, and professional documentation carry increasing weight.

As an online guard patrol documentation system with integrated scheduling, COREDINATE helps security companies meet these requirements:

Audit-ready patrol documentation

Time-stamped, GPS-verified control point scans create digital proof of every completed patrol.

Real-time incident reporting

Events with photo and timestamp flow directly into the portal — critical when clients require rapid notification. Learn more about incident reporting.

Client portal for real-time visibility

Clients gain selective real-time visibility into ongoing operations through the client portal.

Integrated time tracking and scheduling

With regional wage variations and complex shift patterns, the system documents exact working hours. Time tracking and scheduling work seamlessly together.

Our article on winning tenders through digital quality documentation: Win contracts with documented quality standards.

Frequently asked questions about military base security