Rheinmetall has secured a €220m contract to upgrade Leopard 2 main battle tanks (MBT) used by the Polish armed forces.
Under the terms of the deal, the company will upgrade 128 used Leopard 2 A4 MBTs acquired from the German Army to Leopard 2 PL standard, making it on par with the German Leopard 2 A5 and A6.
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The company is working with Poland’s Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ) and ZM Bumar-Labedy to provide electronics and weapon technology for the overhaul programme.
In December, the Armament Inspectorate of the Polish armed forces contracted PGZ and ZM Bumar-Labedy to upgrade the Leopard 2 A4 tanks.
The Leopard 2 MBTs are used by 17 countries worldwide.
Manufactured by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), the tanks are designed to engage moving targets while traversing rough terrain, and feature a similar design to systems that have proven effective in day-to-day military training operations.
Canada had already selected Rheinmetall to support a major modernisation programme for the tanks.
In November 2013, the Indonesian Ministry of Defence awarded the company a $289.6m contract to deliver 103 overhauled and modernised Leopard 2 main battle tanks, logistical support services and ammunition.
Image: Leopard 2 is a successor to the Leopard 1 MBT. Photo: © 2016 Rheinmetall AG.
