Moscow. January 31st. INTERFAX - Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu inspected the Ural Transport Engineering Plant (Uraltransmash) in Yekaterinburg, which is producing the first batch of new Coalition-SV artillery systems, the military department said on Wednesday.
"Oleg Yemelyanov, General Director of Uraltransmash JSC, reported to the head of the Russian military department that the volume of production of self-propelled artillery installations increased 6 times compared to 2022. Yemelyanov reported that the first batch of the newest self-propelled artillery complex 2C35 "Coalition SV" is at the final stage of production, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The Coalition-SV is a new self-propelled howitzer. Rostec State Corporation announced the completion of its state tests last October. The Coalition-SV is designed to destroy command posts, communication centers, artillery and mortar batteries, armored vehicles, air defense and missile defense systems, and enemy manpower. The basis of firepower is a 152 mm 2A88 cannon with a firing rate of more than 10 rounds per minute, which is higher than the firing rate of other artillery systems.
The Ministry of Defense noted that Shoigu at Uraltransmash checked the fulfillment of the state defense order for the production and repair of Msta-S, Acacia, Hyacinth self-propelled artillery systems and Tulip mortars of special power.
"During the inspection, the head of the Russian military department clarified plans for the coming months of work. The head of the enterprise reported that the plan is being implemented and there is still capacity to increase production," the ministry said in a statement.
"If there are opportunities, then we need to use these opportunities," Shoigu was quoted as saying in the Defense Ministry.
"The Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation criticized the chief designer of the enterprise for delaying the production of one of the promising artillery complexes," the ministry said in a statement.
"We did this tightly in 2022. We should have these machines already working at full capacity in 2023, but everything is so calm, so to speak, good," Shoigu told the plant's management, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.
The Minister stressed that the plan to increase the production of self-propelled artillery is an instruction of the President of the Russian Federation.
"We are talking about self-propelled artillery and here, of course, if we have already reached a good pace for repairs and new Msta guns today, then we need to strengthen other systems. In this regard, I would like to receive a report within a week on how we will reach the indicators that are set by the President's instructions. This must be done. Because all these instructions, they are somehow related to a very specific job - work on the battlefield," the Russian Defense Ministry quoted Shoigu's statement at meetings with the leadership of defense industry enterprises.
According to Shoigu, it is necessary to accelerate the work on testing and the start of mass production of new self-propelled artillery installations.
"The demand for these weapons is extremely high in our country. Therefore, I think that today we will discuss, make a decision and enter into a long-term contract for this work. Then the perspective will be clear," the minister said.
"Separately, these are new works on self-propelled artillery. The works that have reached the final stage. We will receive the first six cars in February. This is superimposed on what concerns ammunition. We have some ammunition there. Therefore, timely delivery is necessary," Shoigu said.
According to him, groups from ammunition-producing enterprises are conducting tests at landfills and in the zone of a special military operation.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that Shoigu inspected the assembly shops of Uraltransmash, he was informed that the average salary of a worker is about 130 thousand rubles, depending on qualifications.