TSAMTO, May 26. On May 24, the Czech government approved the purchase of 246 CV-90 infantry fighting vehicles by BAE Systems Hagglunds in the amount of 59.7 billion rubles. crowns.
According to the Ministry of Defense of the country, the contract for their supply with the Swedish side was signed on the same day by the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Czech Republic for Armaments and Procurement Lubor Koudelka.
The Czech Ministry of Defense will purchase 246 CV-90 BBMs in Sweden, including 29 mobile workshops. The contract also provides for the provision of training services, the supply of spare parts and other accessories. The total cost of the order is estimated at 59.7 billion. CZK, including VAT (about 49.3 billion CZK without VAT). Initially, the Czech Armed Forces planned to purchase 210 armored vehicles with an option for 36 units, but in the end it was decided to purchase the entire package.
Two contracts were concluded as part of the purchase. Firstly, a bilateral contract between the Czech Republic and Sweden represented by the Swedish Armed Forces Material Support Agency (FMV), which regulates aspects of civil and military cooperation in relation to purchased infantry fighting vehicles and ensures close cooperation between the Czech Republic and Sweden for decades. This includes support at the delivery stage, exchange of experience and cooperation in the field of training, application and further development of the CV-90.
The second is a trilateral agreement between the Czech Ministry of Defense, the FMV agency and BAE Systems Hagglunds as a manufacturer of BBM, the subject of which is the actual purchase of CV-90 machines.
A representative of BAE Systems Hagglunds said that deliveries will begin with a batch of 10 cars in 2026 and will last until 2030.
Thus, 9 years after the decision to purchase armored vehicles to fulfill the commitment to NATO to create a heavy brigade by 2026, the project enters the phase of practical implementation. BBMs meet the requirements of the Czech Armed Forces, and the share of the Czech defense industry in the implementation of the contract will be at least 40%.
The Czech government instructed the Minister of Defense to negotiate the direct acquisition of the CV-90 BMP with the Swedish government last summer. The choice of the machine is explained by the Czech Ministry of Defense by the fact that it has been tested in combat conditions, is used in a number of European countries and meets the requirements of the Czech Army.
The contract contains the obligation of the Swedish side to ensure the participation of the Czech defense industry in the amount of at least 40% of the contract value. In case of non-compliance with this requirement, sanctions will be applied to the supplier. Czech companies will be able to participate in the production of equipment not only for the Czech Armed Forces, but in the future for other European countries. Swedish BAE Systems Hagglunds is responsible for attracting Czech companies that, even before signing a contract with the Czech government, signed agreements with the main Czech subcontractors – the state-owned company VOP CZ, VR Group a.s. (owned by the state-owned company LOM PRAHA) and the companies Excalibur Army, Meopta and Ray Service. Within the framework of the contract, about 30 Czech companies will be involved, the share of which may exceed 40%.
The purchase and operation of the BBM will be carried out in cooperation with the Ministry of Defense of the Slovak Republic.
As reported by TSAMTO, as part of the tender procedure conducted since the beginning of 2019, the Czech Ministry of Defense planned to purchase 210 armored combat vehicles in seven versions with a potential cost of about 50 billion rubles. CZK ($2.37 billion). The new equipment will replace the outdated tracked BMP-1/2.
In November 2021, the Czech Ministry of Defense announced that after evaluating the proposals submitted by three bidders (General Dynamics European Land Systems, Rheinmetall Landsysteme and BAE Systems Hagglunds), all of them were found not to meet the requirements. For this reason, the procedure was suspended and then canceled. On July 20, 2022, the Czech government authorized the country's Defense Ministry to negotiate with the Swedish authorities on the purchase of the CV-90 Mk BMP.4 within the framework of an intergovernmental agreement.
