Czech Republic Plans to Localize Leopard 2 Production
22 April, 2024 The assembly process of the "Qatari" Leopard 2A7 at the KMW plant, Germany Czech defense companies, including Excalibur Army, will be involved in the production of Leopard 2A8 tanks as part of a large European order. The Czech publication Echo24 reported on this, citing its own sources.
A number of Czech companies that are part of the Czechoslovak Group holding company will be involved in the execution of a major contract for the production of Leopard 2A8 tanks. In particular, according to current discussions, a new turret assembly line for German tanks is to be built at the Excalibur Army plant in Sternberg.
Leopard 2 turret at the Krauss-Maffei Wegmann plant in Munich, April 2022. Photo credits: Felix Schmitt
According to the publication, a company that produces auxiliary power units,Velka Bites, and Ray Service, which manufactures power grids, may also be involved in the production of tank assemblies. Currently, these companies are already involved in the production of Lynx infantry fighting vehicles for another German giant, Rheinmetall.
Czechoslovak Group spokesperson Andrej Cirtek confirmed that the company is ready to participate in the project, but intensive negotiations with the developer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann are still ongoing. If successful in joining the pan-European order, Czech enterprises will take part in the production of 77 tanks for their country's armed forces and hundreds of other vehicles under the "European contract." Production of the next-generation Leopard 2A8 will begin no earlier than 2026, and the first units will be delivered to customers in 2027.
The total volume of orders for Germany, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Estonia, Norway, Sweden, Italy and Spain is expected to last until the end of the next decade.
Leopard 2A8 main battle tank produced by the German company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann. Photo from open sources
Rapidly expanding production capacity to meet the "explosive" demand for Leopard 2 in Europe after the start of the Russian invasion is a challenge for Krauss-Maffei Wegmann. Currently, KMW produces three to four 2A7 Leopards per month as part of orders from Hungary and Qatar.
This is an extremely low figure in historical retrospect and unsatisfactory for an order for hundreds of vehicles.
The company intends to increase production to 20 tanks per month.
Involving the powerful Czech industry as a contractor should be a good solution to this problem and help the German giant return to its Cold War strength.