According to information released by the Armament Inspectorate of the Polish MoD, 3 out of 12 bidders have been selected to work on the BWP-1 (BMP-1) IFV upgrade programme, throughout the technical dialogue procedure that had been launched. The 3 businesses selected are capable of performing the work as required. The modernization of the vehicles that are still in active service (around 1,000 of them) would cover the weapons, C2 suite and the electrical power supply.
The final contender are:
- Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. 2. CMI Defence Polska Sp. z o.o. 3. Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa S.A. [PGZ Group], along with Wojskowe Zakłady Motoryzacyjne S.A. [WZM S.A. – Military Automotive Works]
As the above release suggests, 75% of the 12 entities submitting their requests in the technical dialogue have been rejected. The three strongest and most attractive offers are still being considered in the process. The Israeli Rafael Advanced Defense Systems company offers both turret systems, as well as the Spike ATGMs. A myriad of manned and unmanned systems by this company has been integrated on a wide range of vehicles – BMP-1/2 platforms included. John Cockerill Defence is another entity with a rich portfolio of modular turret systems for wheeled and tracked platforms.