Poland – The Polish arms company Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa announced on Friday, 24 February, the signing of agreements to strengthen its cooperation with its South Korean partners.
According to the press release issued by the company, which is based in Radom (some 100 km south of Warsaw),
the signed documents establish a framework for industrial cooperation with South Korean companies
to produce K2 Black Panther tanks and K9 Thunder howitzers in Poland:
“It has been agreed that
the joint production of K2PL tanks and associated vehicles on a tracked chassis will take place at Wojskowe Zakłady Motoryzacyjne in Poznań.
The scope of industrial capacities to be transferred to WZM and other PGZ companies has also been defined, including tank assembly and the creation of capacities for the production of tanks and turrets (…)
As a result of the negotiations with Hanwha Aerospace, an agreement has been signed on the creation of a Polish–Korean consortium for the production of the K9PL howitzers. The Polish side is represented in the consortium by PGZ S.A. and Huta Stalowa Wola S.A. (…) The first stage involves the integration and final assembly of the K9PL howitzers, and
the second stage will see the production of the K9PL howitzers at HSW’s facilities. ”
820 K2PL tanks and 460 K9PL howitzers
As the Polish defence newspaper Dziennik Zbrojny writes, “the basis for ordering the production of K2PL tanks and K9PL howitzers in Poland is the framework agreements signed on 27 July 2022. The first one, signed with Hyundai Rotem, provides for the production in Poland and South Korea of a total of 820 K2PL tanks, that is, a Polonised version of the K2 Black Panther tank, starting in 2026. (…) The second framework agreement, with Hanwha Defense, provides for the production in Poland and South Korea, starting in 2026, of a total of 460 units of the K9PL, a Polonised version of the AHS K9A1 Thunder. ”
