The Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation (OCCAR) has announced today the signing of a major contract for additional Boxer vehicles for the Netherlands and Germany1. The contract is 4.5 billion euros and raises the overall investment in the Boxer programme, managed by OCCAR, to over 10 billion euros.
In total 270 new Boxer vehicles are being procured, Germany will be getting the lion’s share with an order of 198 vehicles for its army.
The German order is comprised of three variants, ambulance, driver training and Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV), additionally, upgrades to existing vehicles in service will also be conducted.
Per Hartpunkt2 reporting, the German order for Boxer driver training vehicles is for 10 units, and the ambulance variant is for 38 units.
According to the budget committee of the German Bundestag3 the budget for this order is 67 million euros for the driver training vehicles and 351 million euros for the ambulances. Additionally, existing Boxer ambulances in army service will be upgraded with new medical and communications equipment in an investment worth 139 million euros.
As for the order of the new Boxer IFV, it’s in tandem with the Netherlands, with the country purchasing 72 units, while Germany will procure 150.
Baptised the Shackal, the new Boxer IFV will be equipped with the Puma’s RCT30 turret boasting a 30mm automatic cannon as its main gun and Spike anti-tank missiles.
Per the budget committee of the German Bundestag4 the German order will cost 3.4 billion euros and deliveries are set to comment in 2027 and finish in 2031.
Per Esut5 reporting, the order for the Boxer IFV will also include the option to contract a further 248 vehicles, 200 of them for Germany and 48 for the Netherlands.
Sources:
1: https://www.occar.int/news/occar-expands-boxer-capability-with-45-billion-euro-investment–2
3: https://www.bmvg.de/de/aktuelles/bundestag-bewilligt-neue-technik-fuer-das-heer-5998536
4: https://www.bmvg.de/de/aktuelles/beschaffung-bundestag-ruestungsprojekte-6027308