The Defence Ministry will discuss the purchase of Pandurs with its producer, the Austrian Steyr company, next week. Originally, the Czech military intended to purchase 199 Pandurs but the Czech government abrogated the contract at the end of last year. In January, it gave a second chance to Steyr.
On the basis of the results of the new round of talks, the Czech military could buy 107 Pandurs in six modifications. Originally, VOP-026 was to put up seven Czech Defence Ministry, Steyr sign memorandum on understanding ...
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Czechs critical of work of their MEPs-poll ... types of hulls, including chemical, on the Steyr-made undercarriages. It was to assemble 52 vehicles within a deal worth almost 2 billion crowns. "Of the original 18 types only six versions of APCs are under discussion now. For our company it would mean, if no changes occur, that of the original 52 only 4 vehicles would be left to us," Levicek said. The cost of the contract would thus fall to a mere 300 million crowns although VOP-026 has invested some 200 million crowns in the preparation of the project, he said. "We will seek change in our original contract. Our ambition is to produce all types of hulls that are under discussion. I even do not want to consider another possibility," Levicek said, adding that he firmly believed that the contract holder would offer the order to his company. The government abrogated the original contract worth more than 20 billion crowns because Steyr failed to supply the first vehicles in time. However, it started a new round of negotiations in January. On Wednesday, representatives of the Czech Defence Ministry and Steyr signed a memorandum including an agreement on independent testing of two Pandurs. The talks on the purchase of the APCs are to start next week. According to CTK sources, testing of Pandurs could be carried out in Sternberk. "So far, it has been a mere wishful thinking because it is up to the Defence Ministry to decide. However, I firmly believe that we will receive this order. I cannot imagine any foreign company conducting the testing according to Czech defence standards," Levicek said. According to original information, the new project is to be twice as cheap as the abrogated one. The price of one carrier remains unchanged but the military will buy half the originally planned number of APCs. The military expects Steyr to supply the APCs by the end of this year. It wants to use them in foreign missions next year.
(Ceske Noviny)
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