The Indian Ministry of Defense will hasten the upgrading of its Russian-made BMP-2 infantry combat vehicles and will issue tenders to buy 2,000 engines for the program, according to reports, while shelving its $10 billion FICV program.
The Indian Army’s more than 1,500 BMP-2s will be upgraded at a cost of more than $1.2 billion in the next three to five years, and the program last month received formal MoD clearance, Defense News reported.
Though this move doesn’t necessarily shut down the homegrown FICV project, it is less likely to see the light of day because the decision has already been delayed, an Army official was quoted as saying.
The Army requires engines able to generate 350 to 380 horsepower and are easy to maintain and operate in extreme weather conditions. The existing engine of the BMP-2 has 285 horsepower and is not suited for cross-country mobility, the report added.
With the upgrade, the Indian Army will be able to provide an improved anti-tank guided missile system and 30mm automatic grenade launcher with advances observation and surveillance, night-fighting capability and fire control.
After two years of talks, a decision has yet to be made on the FICV project that would be the first built in the “Make India” category.
Two short-listed Indian companies would be required to build an FICV prototype and the winning company would be awarded the contract to produce 2600 FICs after field trials.
The Defense Ministry had selected state-owned Bharat Earth Movers and a consortium of Larsen & Toubro, Mahindra Defense and Tata Power.
The Indian MoD has approved the procurement of Infantry Combat Vehicle (BMPs-2/2k) worth INR 1125 Crore (USD 173.5 million) from the Indian Factory Board (IFB)
The Indian Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) is likely to take a decision later this month about reissuing expression of interest (EoI) for the Armys futuristic infantry combat vehicle (FICV) program. “At the recent Defence Procurement Board (DPB) meeting, it was decided to let the DAC take a call about reissuing expression of interest (EoI) for the FICV,”
Indias defense Minister, Manohar Parrikar will hold a meeting with all the stakeholders in the $15 billion Future Infantry Combat Vehicle (FICV) project to build 2610 vehicles for the Indian Army next week. Talking to the media on the opening day of Aero India Air Show 2017, Manohar Parrikar said, everything has been discussed about the project and there are certain aspects that are to be finalized
Indian Army has issued two new Requests for information (RFI) to upgrade 1500 BMP-2/2K tanks with Anti-Tank Guided Missile (ATGM) systems and engines. The Indian Army will have an initial requirement of approximately 10,000 - 15000 ATGMs followed by annual requirement of 1500 – 3000 ATMGs
Tata Motors has signed a strategic agreement with Bharat Forge Limited and General Dynamics for Indian Armys Future Infantry Combat Vehicle (FICV) program. Tata Motors will lead the consortium, with Bharat Forge Limited as a partner, while General Dynamics Land Systems will bring in its much proven expertise in combat vehicle platforms, the company said in a release Monday
The deadline for Indian Armys INR 1 Trillion (USD 15 billion) Future Infantry Combat Vehicle (FICV) program has been extended for 10 Indian companies to submit project reports. The earlier deadline of Oct 15 to submit expression of interest for the FICV project has been extended by three months and the new deadline will be 15 January 2016 at the request of several participating companies seeking clarification on the program, Janes quoted an unnamed official source as saying Monday
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