Land Warfare
Slovak vehicle procurement faces a blurry future
The new leadership in the Slovak MoD faces a series of hard decisions over many procurement programmes that are expected to change the posture of country’s land forces.
At the same time, the army desperately awaits new armoured, all-terrain tactical vehicles in the 4×4 and 8×8 configuration.
In late May the government of Slovakia, which had been sworn in just three months earlier, announced its intention to cancel a tender for procurement of 424 armoured, all-terrain tactical vehicles in the 4×4 configuration.
The project included an option for 20 vehicles for the Ministry of Interior, and its appropriated budget was €321 million ($361 million) excluding VAT.
This procurement was expected to change the posture of the Slovak Ground Forces and significantly enhance its operational capabilities on the modern battlefield.
However, it has attracted criticism ever since it was announced by the previous government in 2019. Opponents argue that the project is a deliberate attempt to favour one potential bidder over others, by setting out specific technical requirements for the new tactical vehicle.
Nearly a year ago the Slovak MoD was forced to suspend the tactical vehicle procurement programme amid a review of the tender evaluation procedure. The decision was demanded by the Office for Public Procurement (UVO), a government body responsible for controlling execution of public tenders according to the country’s law.
The next steps for the MoD are unclear. It seems very probable that the ministry will lean towards launching an international tender, which will be open to all interested bidders, domestic and foreign.
The number of vehicles planned for procurement should remain unchanged in comparison to the previous tender. However, it would not be surprising if Slovakia decided to acquire fewer vehicles, taking into consideration the likely economic damage to the MoD balance sheet arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, the MoD is also expected to finalise a decision on the prolonged procurement of 81 Vydra 8×8 wheeled armoured vehicles, which has been one of the most important and highly anticipated programmes in the country with a planned budget of about €417 million.
The MoD has so far failed to secure the contract for the new Vydra vehicle, which is based on the Finnish Patria AMV 8×8 chassis fitted with a Turra 30 turret and a 30mm 2A42 gun.
Slovak defence companies, such as KONŠTRUKTA-Defence or EVPU, played a significant role in integrating the Finnish wheeled platform with locally designed components and were expected to oversee the production of new armoured vehicle in the country.
The final decision on procurement of Vydra vehicles was expected in the first half of 2019 after the conclusion of all tests and trials of the prototype in Slovakia and Finland.
This process evaluated the platform’s operational capabilities in different terrain and climate conditions, and confirmed its compliance with technical requirements of the Slovak army.
While the testing process was successful, the procurement programme was suddenly halted amid harsh criticism from the political opposition (which is now the party in government).
Political opponents deemed the planned procurement as too expensive and questioned the legality of the decision to select the Patria AMV as the preferred wheeled platform for the future Vydra vehicle.
In late 2019 the Slovak authorities announced that they were postponing the procurement of new armoured vehicles until the general election in February 2020; hence the new government, which was so critical of the process, must make the final decision.
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