diff --git a/api/maven-api-model/src/main/mdo/maven.mdo b/api/maven-api-model/src/main/mdo/maven.mdo
index b3f8478293dd..1ba9e93a1f1a 100644
--- a/api/maven-api-model/src/main/mdo/maven.mdo
+++ b/api/maven-api-model/src/main/mdo/maven.mdo
@@ -1354,7 +1354,7 @@
      */
     public String getManagementKey() {
         if (managementKey == null) {
-            managementKey = getGroupId() + ":" + getArtifactId() + ":" + getType() + (getClassifier() != null ? ":" + getClassifier() : "");
+            managementKey = (getGroupId() + ":" + getArtifactId() + ":" + getType() + (getClassifier() != null ? ":" + getClassifier() : "")).intern();
         }
         return managementKey;
     }
diff --git a/compat/maven-model/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/model/pom/PomMemoryAnalyzer.java b/compat/maven-model/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/model/pom/PomMemoryAnalyzer.java
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..bea49c38170c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/compat/maven-model/src/test/java/org/apache/maven/model/pom/PomMemoryAnalyzer.java
@@ -0,0 +1,377 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+package org.apache.maven.model.pom;
+
+import java.lang.reflect.Field;
+import java.lang.reflect.Modifier;
+import java.nio.file.Files;
+import java.nio.file.Path;
+import java.nio.file.Paths;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
+import java.util.stream.Collectors;
+
+import org.apache.maven.api.model.Model;
+import org.apache.maven.model.v4.MavenStaxReader;
+
+/**
+ * A utility class that analyzes Maven POM files to identify memory usage patterns and potential memory optimizations.
+ * This analyzer focuses on identifying duplicate strings and their memory impact across different paths in the POM structure.
+ *
+ * <p>The analyzer processes POM files recursively, tracking string occurrences and their locations within the POM structure.
+ * It can identify areas where string deduplication could provide significant memory savings.</p>
+ *
+ * <p>Usage example:</p>
+ * <pre>
+ * PomMemoryAnalyzer analyzer = new PomMemoryAnalyzer();
+ * Model model = reader.read(Files.newInputStream(pomPath));
+ * analyzer.analyzePom(model);
+ * analyzer.printAnalysis();
+ * </pre>
+ *
+ * <p>The analysis output includes:</p>
+ * <ul>
+ *   <li>Total memory usage per POM path</li>
+ *   <li>Potential memory savings through string deduplication</li>
+ *   <li>Most frequent string values and their occurrence counts</li>
+ *   <li>Statistics grouped by POM element types</li>
+ * </ul>
+ *
+ * <p>This tool is particularly useful for identifying memory optimization opportunities
+ * in large Maven multi-module projects where POM files may contain significant
+ * duplicate content.</p>
+ */
+public class PomMemoryAnalyzer {
+    private final Map<String, Map<String, StringStats>> pathStats = new HashMap<>();
+    private final Map<String, Integer> globalStringFrequency = new HashMap<>();
+    private int totalPoms = 0;
+
+    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
+        if (args.length < 1) {
+            System.out.println("Usage: PomMemoryAnalyzer <directory-with-poms>");
+            System.exit(1);
+        }
+
+        Path rootDir = Paths.get(args[0]);
+        PomMemoryAnalyzer analyzer = new PomMemoryAnalyzer();
+        MavenStaxReader reader = new MavenStaxReader();
+
+        // Find all pom.xml files, excluding those under src/ or target/
+        Files.walk(rootDir)
+                .filter(path -> path.getFileName().toString().equals("pom.xml"))
+                .filter(path -> !containsSrcOrTarget(path))
+                .forEach(pomPath -> {
+                    try {
+                        Model model = reader.read(Files.newInputStream(pomPath));
+                        analyzer.analyzePom(model);
+                    } catch (Exception e) {
+                        System.err.println("Error processing " + pomPath + ": " + e.getMessage());
+                    }
+                });
+
+        // Print analysis
+        analyzer.printAnalysis();
+    }
+
+    private static boolean containsSrcOrTarget(Path pomPath) {
+        Path parent = pomPath.getParent();
+        while (parent != null && parent.getFileName() != null) {
+            String dirName = parent.getFileName().toString();
+            if (dirName.equals("src") || dirName.equals("target")) {
+                return true;
+            }
+            parent = parent.getParent();
+        }
+        return false;
+    }
+
+    public void analyzePom(Model model) {
+        totalPoms++;
+        Set<Object> visited = new HashSet<>();
+        processModelNode(model, "/project", "project", visited);
+    }
+
+    private void processModelNode(Object node, String currentPath, String elementName, Set<Object> visited) {
+        if (node == null || !visited.add(node)) {
+            return;
+        }
+
+        Class<?> clazz = node.getClass();
+        while (clazz != null && !clazz.equals(Object.class)) {
+            for (Field field : clazz.getDeclaredFields()) {
+                // Skip static fields and synthetic fields
+                if (Modifier.isStatic(field.getModifiers()) || field.isSynthetic()) {
+                    continue;
+                }
+
+                try {
+                    field.setAccessible(true);
+                    Object value = field.get(node);
+                    if (value == null) continue;
+
+                    String fullPath = currentPath + "/" + field.getName();
+
+                    if (value instanceof String) {
+                        String strValue = (String) value;
+                        recordString(fullPath, strValue);
+                        globalStringFrequency.merge(strValue, 1, Integer::sum);
+                    } else if (value instanceof List) {
+                        List<?> list = (List<?>) value;
+                        for (Object item : list) {
+                            if (item != null) {
+                                String itemName = getSingular(field.getName());
+                                processModelNode(item, fullPath + "/" + itemName, itemName, visited);
+                            }
+                        }
+                    } else if (value instanceof Map) {
+                        Map<?, ?> map = (Map<?, ?>) value;
+                        for (Map.Entry<?, ?> entry : map.entrySet()) {
+                            if (entry.getValue() != null) {
+                                processModelNode(
+                                        entry.getValue(),
+                                        fullPath + "/" + entry.getKey(),
+                                        entry.getKey().toString(),
+                                        visited);
+                            }
+                        }
+                    } else if (!value.getClass().isPrimitive()
+                            && !value.getClass().getName().startsWith("java.")) {
+                        processModelNode(value, fullPath, field.getName(), visited);
+                    }
+                } catch (Exception e) {
+                    // Skip inaccessible or problematic fields
+                }
+            }
+            clazz = clazz.getSuperclass();
+        }
+    }
+
+    private String getSingular(String plural) {
+        if (plural.endsWith("ies")) {
+            return plural.substring(0, plural.length() - 3) + "y";
+        }
+        if (plural.endsWith("s")) {
+            return plural.substring(0, plural.length() - 1);
+        }
+        return plural;
+    }
+
+    private void recordString(String path, String value) {
+        pathStats
+                .computeIfAbsent(path, k -> new HashMap<>())
+                .computeIfAbsent(value, k -> new StringStats())
+                .recordOccurrence(value);
+    }
+
+    public List<PathAnalysis> getPathAnalysisSorted() {
+        List<PathAnalysis> analysis = new ArrayList<>();
+
+        for (Map.Entry<String, Map<String, StringStats>> entry : pathStats.entrySet()) {
+            String path = entry.getKey();
+            Map<String, StringStats> stats = entry.getValue();
+
+            long uniqueStrings = stats.size();
+            long totalOccurrences = stats.values().stream()
+                    .mapToLong(StringStats::getOccurrences)
+                    .sum();
+            long totalMemory = stats.entrySet().stream()
+                    .mapToLong(e -> e.getKey().length() * e.getValue().getOccurrences() * 2L)
+                    .sum();
+            long potentialSavings = stats.entrySet().stream()
+                    .mapToLong(e -> e.getKey().length() * 2L * (e.getValue().getOccurrences() - 1))
+                    .sum();
+
+            analysis.add(new PathAnalysis(
+                    path,
+                    uniqueStrings,
+                    totalOccurrences,
+                    totalMemory,
+                    potentialSavings,
+                    (double) totalOccurrences / uniqueStrings,
+                    getMostFrequentValues(stats, 5)));
+        }
+
+        analysis.sort((a, b) -> Long.compare(b.potentialSavings, a.potentialSavings));
+        return analysis;
+    }
+
+    private List<ValueFrequency> getMostFrequentValues(Map<String, StringStats> stats, int limit) {
+        return stats.entrySet().stream()
+                .map(e -> new ValueFrequency(e.getKey(), e.getValue().getOccurrences()))
+                .sorted((a, b) -> Long.compare(b.frequency, a.frequency))
+                .limit(limit)
+                .collect(Collectors.toList());
+    }
+
+    public void printAnalysis() {
+        System.out.printf("Analyzed %d POMs%n%n", totalPoms);
+
+        // First, get all paths
+        List<PathAnalysis> allPaths = getPathAnalysisSorted();
+
+        // Create groups based on the final path component
+        Map<String, List<PathAnalysis>> groupedPaths = new HashMap<>();
+        Map<String, Map<String, Long>> groupValueFrequencies = new HashMap<>();
+
+        for (PathAnalysis path : allPaths) {
+            String finalComponent = path.path.substring(path.path.lastIndexOf('/') + 1);
+
+            // Add path to its group
+            groupedPaths.computeIfAbsent(finalComponent, k -> new ArrayList<>()).add(path);
+
+            // Aggregate value frequencies for the group
+            Map<String, Long> groupFreqs = groupValueFrequencies.computeIfAbsent(finalComponent, k -> new HashMap<>());
+            for (ValueFrequency vf : path.mostFrequentValues) {
+                groupFreqs.merge(vf.value, vf.frequency, Long::sum);
+            }
+        }
+
+        // Create final group analyses and sort them by total savings
+        List<GroupAnalysis> sortedGroups = groupedPaths.entrySet().stream()
+                .map(entry -> {
+                    String groupName = entry.getKey();
+                    List<PathAnalysis> paths = entry.getValue();
+                    Map<String, Long> valueFreqs = groupValueFrequencies.get(groupName);
+
+                    long totalSavings =
+                            paths.stream().mapToLong(p -> p.potentialSavings).sum();
+                    long totalMemory =
+                            paths.stream().mapToLong(p -> p.totalMemory).sum();
+                    long totalUnique = valueFreqs.size();
+                    long totalOccurrences =
+                            valueFreqs.values().stream().mapToLong(l -> l).sum();
+
+                    List<ValueFrequency> topValues = valueFreqs.entrySet().stream()
+                            .map(e -> new ValueFrequency(e.getKey(), e.getValue()))
+                            .sorted((a, b) -> Long.compare(b.frequency, a.frequency))
+                            .limit(5)
+                            .collect(Collectors.toList());
+
+                    return new GroupAnalysis(
+                            groupName, paths, totalUnique, totalOccurrences, totalMemory, totalSavings, topValues);
+                })
+                .sorted((a, b) -> Long.compare(b.totalSavings, a.totalSavings))
+                .collect(Collectors.toList());
+
+        // Print each group
+        for (GroupAnalysis group : sortedGroups) {
+            System.out.printf("%nPaths ending with '%s':%n", group.name);
+            System.out.printf("Total potential savings: %dKB%n", group.totalSavings / 1024);
+            System.out.printf("Total memory: %dKB%n", group.totalMemory / 1024);
+            System.out.printf("Total unique values: %d%n", group.totalUnique);
+            System.out.printf("Total occurrences: %d%n", group.totalOccurrences);
+            System.out.printf("Duplication ratio: %.2f%n", (double) group.totalOccurrences / group.totalUnique);
+
+            System.out.println("\nMost frequent values across all paths:");
+            for (ValueFrequency v : group.mostFrequentValues) {
+                System.out.printf("  %-70s %d times%n", v.value, v.frequency);
+            }
+
+            System.out.println("\nIndividual paths:");
+            System.out.println("----------------------------------------");
+            for (PathAnalysis path : group.paths.stream()
+                    .sorted((a, b) -> Long.compare(b.potentialSavings, a.potentialSavings))
+                    .collect(Collectors.toList())) {
+                System.out.printf(
+                        "%-90s %6dKB %6dKB%n", path.path, path.totalMemory / 1024, path.potentialSavings / 1024);
+            }
+            System.out.println();
+        }
+    }
+
+    private static class GroupAnalysis {
+        final String name;
+        final List<PathAnalysis> paths;
+        final long totalUnique;
+        final long totalOccurrences;
+        final long totalMemory;
+        final long totalSavings;
+        final List<ValueFrequency> mostFrequentValues;
+
+        GroupAnalysis(
+                String name,
+                List<PathAnalysis> paths,
+                long totalUnique,
+                long totalOccurrences,
+                long totalMemory,
+                long totalSavings,
+                List<ValueFrequency> mostFrequentValues) {
+            this.name = name;
+            this.paths = paths;
+            this.totalUnique = totalUnique;
+            this.totalOccurrences = totalOccurrences;
+            this.totalMemory = totalMemory;
+            this.totalSavings = totalSavings;
+            this.mostFrequentValues = mostFrequentValues;
+        }
+    }
+
+    private static class StringStats {
+        private long occurrences = 0;
+
+        public void recordOccurrence(String value) {
+            occurrences++;
+        }
+
+        public long getOccurrences() {
+            return occurrences;
+        }
+    }
+
+    public static class PathAnalysis {
+        public final String path;
+        public final long uniqueStrings;
+        public final long totalOccurrences;
+        public final long totalMemory;
+        public final long potentialSavings;
+        public final double duplicationRatio;
+        public final List<ValueFrequency> mostFrequentValues;
+
+        public PathAnalysis(
+                String path,
+                long uniqueStrings,
+                long totalOccurrences,
+                long totalMemory,
+                long potentialSavings,
+                double duplicationRatio,
+                List<ValueFrequency> mostFrequentValues) {
+            this.path = path;
+            this.uniqueStrings = uniqueStrings;
+            this.totalOccurrences = totalOccurrences;
+            this.totalMemory = totalMemory;
+            this.potentialSavings = potentialSavings;
+            this.duplicationRatio = duplicationRatio;
+            this.mostFrequentValues = mostFrequentValues;
+        }
+    }
+
+    public static class ValueFrequency {
+        public final String value;
+        public final long frequency;
+
+        public ValueFrequency(String value, long frequency) {
+            this.value = value;
+            this.frequency = frequency;
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/model/DefaultModelBuilder.java b/impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/model/DefaultModelBuilder.java
index 2be7f3d2d769..a39f981a13bd 100644
--- a/impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/model/DefaultModelBuilder.java
+++ b/impl/maven-impl/src/main/java/org/apache/maven/impl/model/DefaultModelBuilder.java
@@ -1275,6 +1275,7 @@ Model doReadFileModel() throws ModelBuilderException {
                             .path(modelSource.getPath())
                             .rootDirectory(rootDirectory)
                             .inputStream(is)
+                            .transformer(new InliningTransformer())
                             .build());
                 } catch (XmlReaderException e) {
                     if (!strict) {
@@ -1287,6 +1288,7 @@ Model doReadFileModel() throws ModelBuilderException {
                                 .path(modelSource.getPath())
                                 .rootDirectory(rootDirectory)
                                 .inputStream(is)
+                                .transformer(new InliningTransformer())
                                 .build());
                     } catch (XmlReaderException ne) {
                         // still unreadable even in non-strict mode, rethrow original error
@@ -2029,4 +2031,23 @@ private boolean containsCoordinates(String message, String groupId, String artif
     }
 
     record GAKey(String groupId, String artifactId) {}
+
+    static class InliningTransformer implements XmlReaderRequest.Transformer {
+        static final Set<String> CONTEXTS = Set.of(
+                "groupId",
+                "artifactId",
+                "version",
+                "namespaceUri",
+                "packaging",
+                "scope",
+                "phase",
+                "layout",
+                "policy",
+                "checksumPolicy",
+                "updatePolicy");
+
+        public String transform(String input, String context) {
+            return CONTEXTS.contains(context) ? input.intern() : input;
+        }
+    }
 }