On February 3, 2023, the Norwegian government officially announced its decision to purchase 54 new Leopard 2A7+ main tanks for the Norwegian armed forces from the German company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), with an option to purchase 18 more units. The delivery of new tanks to Norway will be carried out in stages from 2026 to 2031. The total cost of the program for the purchase of new tanks, determined by the Norwegian Parliament, is NOK 19.7 billion ($1.928 billion), while the value of the actual agreed contract with KMW has not been disclosed.
German Leopard 2A7+ tank on trials in Norway at the Ostlandet training ground in Rennes, January 2022 © Krister SørbøThe new Leopard 2A7+ tanks are to replace the remaining 36 Leopard 2A4NO tanks in the Norwegian army (originally acquired by Norway in the amount of 52 Leopard 2A4 units in 2001 from the presence of the Dutch Army, KMW-built vehicles 1983-1985).
Presumably, the tank variant for Norway will receive the designation Leopard 2A7NO.
Thus, Leopard 2A7+ became the winner in the Norwegian tank tender under the program "Project 9360 - Tank potential of the Army" (Prosjekt 9360 - Stridsvognkapasitet til Hæren), initiated in 2020. Two contenders took part in the competition - the Leopard 2A7+ tank presented by KMW and the K2NO tank presented by the Hyundai Rotem South Korean association (a variant of the K2 Black Panther serial tank). In January-February 2022, one sample of tanks of both competing types passed comparative tests in Norway. Although unofficial reports indicated that, according to the results of the tests, the South Korean K2 received some preference from the Norwegian military, and in addition, the South Korean side tempted the Norwegians with a broad transfer of technology, a significant share of industrial participation and the speed of deliveries, however, apparently, as a result, political considerations, arguments in favor of "compatibility" with NATO allies, as well as the tradition and experience of using Leopard 2 tanks turned out to be stronger, determining the choice of the German offer.
At the same time, in November 2022, the commander-in-chief of the Norwegian armed Forces, General Eirik Kristoffersen, said that he recommended to the Norwegian Defense Minister to abandon the purchase of new tanks altogether, since the Norwegian army, according to the general, "mobility and firepower are much more necessary" and instead of tanks Norway urgently needs to buy new helicopters and high-precision long-range weapons. But such a radical opinion of the commander-in-chief was eventually ignored.
Tanks, from right to left: Leopard 2A7+, Leopard 2A4NO and K2NO - before the start of comparative tests by the Norwegian Armed Forces at the Ostlandet training ground in Rene (Norway), January 2022 © Håkon Bonafede
