Poland - Leopard 2PL
The Polish Army became one of the world’s largest users of Leopard 2 tanks. On 22 November 2013, the ministers of defense of Poland and Germany signed a contract for the purchase of: 105 units of 2A5 Leopard tanks, and 14 units of the slightly older 2A4 Leopard tanks, along with the accessories required by the Polish Land Forces.
"We will modernize the versions we have been using so far, and will acquire new units as well. In 5 years’ time the fighting potential of our army sill be significantly boosted" said minister of national defense Tomasz Siemoniak. He stressed that the additional Leopard tanks acquired by the Polish army was state-of-the-art equipment, and that the offer Poland managed to negotiate was very favorable.
Additional tanks gave the Polish defense industry a chance to make a technological leap as well. The 128 Leopard 2A4 tanks that have been in service in the Polish land forces would soon be joined by new units. The purchase made it possible to provide another armored brigade with state-of-the-art equipment.
The technical condition of the Leopards (2A5 version) enabled them to remain in service, without the need to conduct modernization programs, for the next 15 years. In addition, the Leopards are valued highly by the soldiers of the 10th Armored Brigade who had been using them for 10 years. The first tanks would arrive in Poland in 2014.
The Leopard 2A4 tanks the Polish army had been using would undergo a modernization program. Their armor will be upgraded to match the standard of the Leopard 2A5 version. In October 2013, the Armament Inspectorate announced a tender for the modernization program. The potential bidders include, inter alia, Zaklady Mechaniczne "Bumar Labedy" and the Poznan-based Wojskowe Zaklady Motoryzacyjne. But the procedure regarding the upgrade of 128 Leopard 2A4 tanks was concluded without selecting the contractor.
The Armaments Inspectorate of MON did not accept the proposal submitted by the consortium composed of PHO sp. z o. o., Bumar-Labedy S.A. and OBRUM sp. z o. o. due to formal and substantive inconsistencies and the too low Polonisation level. By ‘Polonization value’ the Contracting Authority means the gross value, in PLN, of subassemblies and materials used for modernization of the Leopard 2A4 tank produced in the territory of Poland. This requirement in the contract notice stresses the need to assure that subassemblies and materials are produced in Poland. For this purpose, most contractors will be forced to subcontract the production of subassemblies and materials to companies operating in Poland—i.e. companies from the Polish defence industry.
On 17 February 2015 the Ministry of National Defence (MON) decided that the new proposal regarding the upgrade of 128 Leopard 2A4 tanks to 2PL variant would be prepared in a negotiation procedure with one entity indicated by the Management Board of the Polish Armaments Group (PGZ).
“The Leopard tank upgrade programme is, apart from the manufacturing of Krab self-propelled howitzers, one of the most urgent matters to be resolved by MON, MSP (Ministry of Treasury) and PGZ. As the owner of over 30 key armaments companies, we have the necessary expertise and resources to present an end-to-end proposal to the Polish Army regarding the upgrade of the procured tanks. We are determined to manage this topic quickly,” said Wojciech Dabrowski, President of the Management Board of PGZ.
The negotiations conducted to date with the main integrator of Leopard system configuration, i.e. Krauss Maffei Wegmann GmbH&Co.K.G, proved that the concept, adopted by MON, of executing the upgrade based on the potential of the Polish industry can be implemented by PGZ.
“We estimate that the new proposal for Leopard upgrade will be submitted in the second quarter of this year. Since the establishment of PGZ we have reiterated that we were founded also to resolve ongoing problems in close cooperation with MON and MSP, apart from ensuring the development of the industry and the broad participation in upgrade programmes of the Polish Army. We started with the decision regarding the K9 chassis for the Krab. Now the time has come for the Leopards. At the same time I confirm that we still want Bumar-Labedy to be the leader of this upgrade,” added President Dabrowski.
The December 2015 agreement covering the modernization of the Polish Leopard 2A4 tanks, the aim of which was to upgrade them up to the 2PL standard, was a final point of the long-term negotiations, aimed at providing the armoured component of the Polish Army with a new, indispensable solution. The contract, the value of which was PLN 2.415 billion [US$ ], covered modernization of 128 tanks, with optional works which could cover the remaining 14 examples. Rheinmetall Defence company would act as a strategic partner for the Polish Defence industry.
Leopard 2A4 main battle tank modernization program was planned to be realized between 2018 and 2020. During the year 2017, the consortium would deliver two prototype Leopard 2PL tanks. In 2018, 6 vehicles would be modified by the German Rheinmetall company, with the use of Polish components. Another 12 examples of the tank would be modernized at the Bumar-Labedy facility, with increased contribution of the Polish companies. Starting from the 18th example, the Poles would become the leading party of the works, until the 128th example was modernized – planned to happen in 2020. In 2021, an annex was planned to be signed – and the remaining 14 tanks used by the Polish Army would undergo the modernization process. The weight of the tank after the modernization would not exceed 60 tonnes.
In the case of the tank, it is one of the first examples to be delivered to the Polish Army. According to the plans, the Armament Inspectorate ordered (in two batches) the modernization of 142 tanks to the Leopard 2PL standard. They are to be delivered to battalions currently operating the Leopard 2A4 tanks. The works are carried out by a consortium consisting of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa SA and Zaklady Mechaniczne “Bumar-Labedy” SA. The strategic partner is Rheinmetall Landsysteme GmbH, and the sub-suppliers are a number of Polish companies (including WZM SA, PCO SA, Rosomak SA, ZM Tarnów SA, Research and Development Center of Mechanical Equipment OBRUM Sp. Z oo).
The programme to modernise the fleet of Polish Leopard 2A4 MBTs to the 2PL standard has faced numerous difficulties and technical issues. As a result, deliveries of upgraded vehicles will be delayed by up to three years. On 24 December 2019, the Armament Inspectorate of the Polish MoD signed an agreement.
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