In 2025, Russia Increased its Order for Long-Range Charges for Msta Artillery Systems

In 2025, Russia increased its order for long-range powder charges for artillery shells for Msta systems. Their use is intended to enable artillery to operate farther from the front line.

Russian procurement documents obtained by Militarnyi evidence this.

It was reported that last year, the Russian army was to receive 1,100,000 rounds for these artillery systems, of which almost a million were full-charge sets and about 100,000 were long-range.

In this way, the Russians probably wanted to ensure their artillery could operate a little farther from the line of engagement (LOE) to protect it from Ukrainian drones and counter-battery fire.

For comparison, in 2024, the Russian defense industry received an order to supply 831,000 such rounds, of which 540,000 were full-charge rounds, and another 96,000 were long-range rounds.

At that time, the cost of a conventional shell was estimated at RUB 94-98 thousand ($1,250), while long-range shells cost RUB 124 thousand ($1,550).

It should be noted that the finished artillery “shell” supplied to the Russian army consists of a projectile, a fuse, and a powder charge.

The latter can be full, reduced (less powder), or long-range (more powder than normal), which is why the same type of shell is supplied under three different names.

New shell

For artillery systems such as the Msta, the Russians have also developed a new OF64 shell with an elongated geometry and a recess in the bottom of the body, which has improved aerodynamics and, in combination with a longer howitzer barrel, has increased the firing range.

In the context of full-scale war with Ukraine, Russia’s GosNIImash has switched to equipping these munitions with the TA-20 “mobilization” mixture (TNT and aluminum powder in an 80/20 ratio) instead of the more powerful hexal.

In 2026, Russia ordered 100 guided 122 mm artillery shells under the unknown index KV122 — probably Kitolov-2M.

For more details on Russia’s purchase of artillery shells for the war against Ukraine, read the article: “Secrets of the ‘state defense order’: how many shells does Russia produce?”