Saab wins Polish mega order for Carl-Gustaf recoilless rifles

PARIS — Sweden’s Saab signed a contract with Poland to provide the country with more than $1 billion worth of Carl-Gustaf M4 recoilless rifles, ammunition and training equipment , in what the company said is its largest ground-combat contract ever.

Saab expects to book the order, with a value of 12.9 billion Swedish kroner ($1.2 billion), before the end of June, the company said in a statement on Monday. The contract period runs from 2024 to 2027.

The Carl-Gustaf M4, the fourth generation of a recoilless rifle dating back to the late 1940s, has been a commercial success for Saab, with at least 15 countries buying the system. The U.S. Army in September expanded a 2019 framework contract for the Carl-Gustaf, ordering new high-explosive rounds for the system in a $105 million deal that also included AT4 disposable anti-tank systems.

“I am proud of our close relationship with the Polish Armed Forces and that Saab can continue to strengthen Poland’s ground combat capability and national defense,” Saab CEO Micael Johansson said in the statement.

The order will include several thousand Carl-Gustaf launchers as well as hundreds of thousands of rounds of various types, the Polish Ministry of National Defence said in a statement . The Carl-Gustaf M4 weighs about 7 kilograms, and consist of a shoulder-launched reusable system firing a range of 84mm rounds, including anti-armor and anti-personnel ammunitions.

Poland, which had already been in the process of rearming, boosted its military budget further following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The country is spending on everything from tanks and frigates to anti-air defense and fighter jets, and is pursuing a goal to increase the size of its military by about 60% to create a 300,000-strong army.

The Polish contract is expected to be effective by the end of the second quarter, subject to fulfilment of “certain external conditions,” Saab said, without providing details.

Saab in October received a Japanese order for more than 300 Carl-Gustaf systems for delivery in 2025, followed by a purchase from an unidentified buyer in November worth 1.3 billion kroner that helped lift the company’s order book to a record at the end of 2023.

Separately, the company said it started construction on a new Carl-Gustaf factory in India on Monday, after receiving approval for a 100% foreign direct investment. The site will be the first for the system outside Sweden, and the first foreign fully-owned defense production facility in India, according to Saab.

The company will partner with Indian suppliers and will fully meet “Make in India” requirements for systems produced at the new site in the state of Haryana, Saab said, referring to the Indian government’s mantra of prioritizing domestic production. The Indian Army has been a customer for the Carl-Gustaf system since 1976, according to the Swedish company.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——瑞典萨博公司与波兰签署了一份合同，向该国提供价值超过 10 亿美元的卡尔·古斯塔夫 M4 无后坐力炮、弹药和训练设备。该公司称，这是其有史以来最大的地面作战合同。

萨博公司周一在一份声明中表示，预计将在6月底前收到这份价值129亿瑞典克朗（约合12亿美元）的订单。合同期限为2024年至2027年。

卡尔·古斯塔夫M4无后坐力炮是第四代无后坐力炮，其历史可以追溯到20世纪40年代末。这款炮为萨博公司带来了巨大的商业成功，至少有15个国家购买了该系统。今年9月，美国陆军扩大了2019年签署的卡尔·古斯塔夫M4框架合同，订购了新型高爆弹，合同金额达1.05亿美元，其中还包括AT4一次性反坦克系统。

萨博首席执行官米凯尔·约翰逊在声明中表示：“我为我们与波兰武装部队的紧密关系感到自豪，萨博能够继续加强波兰的地面作战能力和国防力量。”

波兰国防部在一份声明中表示，此次订单将包括数千套卡尔·古斯塔夫榴弹发射器以及数十万发各种类型的弹药。卡尔·古斯塔夫M4榴弹发射器重约7公斤，是一种肩扛式可重复使用系统，可发射多种84毫米弹药，包括反装甲弹药和杀伤人员弹药。

波兰此前已在进行军备重建，在俄罗斯于 2022 年 2 月入侵乌克兰后，进一步增加了军费开支。该国在坦克、护卫舰、防空系统和战斗机等各个方面都投入巨资，并力求将军队规模扩大约 60%，打造一支 30 万人的军队。

萨博表示，根据“某些外部条件”，与波兰的合同预计将于第二季度末生效，但并未提供具体细节。

萨博在 10 月份收到了一份日本订单，订购 300 多套 Carl-Gustaf 系统，将于 2025 年交付。随后，萨博在 11 月份又从一位身份不明的买家那里购买了价值 13 亿克朗的车辆，这使得该公司在 2023 年底的订单量创下历史新高。

此外，该公司周一表示，在获得100%外商直接投资许可后，已在印度启动了新的卡尔·古斯塔夫（Carl-Gustaf）工厂的建设。据萨博公司称，该工厂将是该系统在瑞典以外的首个生产基地，也是印度首个外资全资拥有的国防生产设施。

萨博公司表示，公司将与印度供应商合作，并完全满足印度政府“印度制造”的要求，确保位于哈里亚纳邦新工厂生产的系统符合这一要求。萨博公司还表示，印度陆军自1976年以来一直是卡尔·古斯塔夫系统的客户。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。