Finish armoured vehicle manufacturer Patria has announced that Slovakia has awarded the company for the Bojovými Obrnenými Vozidlami (BOV) 8x8 programme. Patria will supply Slovakia with 76 AMV XP 8×8 armoured wheeled vehicles.
Following approval by the Government of the Slovak Republic, Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď has been instructed to conclude a contract with the Finnish Government for the delivery of wheeled armoured vehicles. According to a statement from the Slovak Ministry of Defence, the vehicles will be supplied by Patria for the BOV programme. The contract is worth €447M and includes logistics, ammunition, infrastructure services, and vehicles. Patria will start the delivery of the cars in 2023.
Five companies had submitted bids by the end of 2021 and provided vehicles for trials in February this year. Five companies submitted their bids at the tender:
Czech Republic (Pandur II, Tatra)
Finland (AMV XP, Patria)
Spain (VCR 8×8 Dragón, GDELS)
Romania (Piranha V, GDELS)
USA (Stryker LAV III, GDLS)
The AMV XP is the latest version of Patria’s armoured 8×8 wheeled vehicle. The Slovakian company EVPÚ will provide a remote-controlled TURRA-30 turret. The primary weapon is a 30mm machine gun, supplemented by a 7.62 machine gun and guided anti-tank missiles.
