Lithuania eyes state defense holding to steer all weapons needs

WARSAW, Poland — Lithuania is gearing towards record-high defense spending next year, and with major procurements of tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and other gear in the pipeline, the country is advancing plans to establish a state-owned defense holding for coordinating the manufacturing activities for weapons, equipment and ammunition.

Vilnius is currently positioning local energy company EPSO-G as the backbone of Lithuania’s future defense industry, involving it in partnerships with foreign suppliers of technology.

The company is to take over a 25.1% stake in Lithuania Defense Services, a joint venture established by KNDS Deutschland and Rheinmetall Landsysteme to assemble 44 Leopard 2A8 tanks for the country’s land forces. The facility where the tanks will be assembled is to be constructed in Kaunas, in the country’s central part, under an investment worth an estimated €50 million ($59 million). The plant will also handle their maintenance, repairs and servicing in the future.

As Lithuania is readying to acquire 100 CV90 infantry fighting vehicles , it is likely EPSO-G will also take part in the procurement of BAE Systems Hägglunds’ product.

On Dec. 15 the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defence said the decision to purchase 100 CV90s “was approved by the State Defence Council with a particular focus on commitment to production of technical components and CV90 MkIV maintenance service here in Lithuania to be included in subsequent acquisition contracts.”

The Baltic State is advancing the acquisition alongside Estonia, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.

A spokesperson for the National Defence Ministry told Defense News: “Lithuania aims to integrate domestic enterprises into the CV90 supply chain and assembly process, including plans for a significant portion of the vehicles to be assembled in Lithuania as part of the broader joint procurement. This industrial involvement is intended to create sustainable local participation in production and support services.”

Under the plan, CV90 deliveries to Lithuania and other program participants are to begin in 2028, according to the ministry. The purchased Leopard 2A8 tanks are to be supplied to Vilnius between 2028 and 2030.

The two types of tracked vehicles are set to become part of the Lithuanian Army’s new Infantry Division consisting of two battalions.

Through its subsidiary EPSO-G Invest, the energy group is also involved in the project to launch a 155mm artillery ammunition factory in the Baltic State. The plant will be jointly owned by Rheinmetall, EPSO-G and Lithuanian state-owned ammunition producer AB Giraitės Ginkluotės Gamykla. The investment is expected to be worth at least €260 million.

Giedrimas Jeglinskas, an opposition lawmaker and a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Lithuanian parliament, told Defense News that increasing the country’s military expenditure to almost 5.4% of its GDP in 2026, or close to €4.8 billion, represents a cross-party consensus.

The need to establish a state-owned defense holding that will represent the state in major procurements such as the Leopard 2A8 and CV90 purchases is also acknowledged across Lithuania’s political spectrum, he said.

“One way is to use EPSO-G as a core bone of this new structure behind the state holding, and then put further elements around it. For strategic defense investments, we require state funds, but also private capital,” said Jeglinskas, who represents the Union of Democrats for Lithuania. “We need the defense holding to be part of a system that works, acting as a co-owner of defense assets, factories that will produce both for Lithuania and for international sales.”

Last month, the Lithuanian Ministry of Finance set up a working group that is to coordinate strategic defense industry projects. In addition to a number of government entities, representatives of EPSO-G and AB Giraitės Ginkluotės Gamykla were also invited to the panel.

The finance ministry said in a statement the group’s formation represents “the first step in the implementation of paragraph 322 of the Government Programme which provides for the establishment of a state-controlled defense industry holding company.”

However, the country’s opposition believes that, as Lithuania’s neighbor Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine, the Baltic state has little time to lose in developing its defense industry, and the incumbent Cabinet should accelerate its efforts.

“One of the disappointing actions of the current government is that they announced they want to execute the creation of the state holding by the end of 2028, which is too late,” Jeglinskas said. “Defense and security must remain the top priority for both the government and the opposition of which I’m part of.”

Jaroslaw Adamowski is the Poland correspondent for Defense News.

波兰华沙——立陶宛正准备在明年创下国防开支新高，并计划大量采购坦克、步兵战车和其他装备。该国正在推进建立国有国防控股公司的计划，以协调武器、装备和弹药的生产活动。

维尔纽斯目前正将当地能源公司 EPSO-G 定位为立陶宛未来国防工业的支柱，并使其与外国技术供应商建立合作关系。

该公司将收购立陶宛国防服务公司（Lithuania Defense Services）25.1%的股份。立陶宛国防服务公司是由德国KNDS公司和莱茵金属陆地系统公司（Rheinmetall Landsysteme）合资成立的，负责为立陶宛陆军组装44辆豹2A8坦克。组装这些坦克的工厂将建在立陶宛中部城市考纳斯，预计投资额为5000万欧元（约合5900万美元）。该工厂未来还将负责这些坦克的维护、修理和保养工作。

由于立陶宛准备采购 100 辆 CV90 步兵战车，EPSO-G 也可能参与 BAE Systems Hägglunds 产品的采购。

12月15日，立陶宛国防部表示，购买100架CV90战斗机的决定“已获得国防委员会批准，特别强调承诺在立陶宛生产技术部件和CV90 MkIV维护服务，并将这些内容纳入后续的采购合同中。”

波罗的海国家正与爱沙尼亚、芬兰、荷兰、挪威和瑞典一起推进此次收购。

立陶宛国防部发言人告诉《防务新闻》：“立陶宛的目标是将国内企业融入CV90的供应链和组装流程，包括计划在立陶宛组装相当一部分车辆，这是更广泛的联合采购的一部分。这种产业参与旨在实现生产和支持服务的可持续本地化参与。”

根据该计划，立陶宛国防部表示，CV90运输机将于2028年开始交付给立陶宛和其他项目参与国。采购的豹2A8坦克将于2028年至2030年间交付给维尔纽斯。

这两种履带式车辆将成为立陶宛陆军新组建的步兵师（由两个营组成）的一部分。

通过其子公司 EPSO-G Invest，这家能源集团也参与了在波罗的海国家建设一座 155 毫米炮弹工厂的项目。该工厂将由莱茵金属公司、EPSO-G 和立陶宛国有弹药生产商 AB Giraitės Ginkluotės Gamykla 共同拥有。预计投资额至少为 2.6 亿欧元。

立陶宛议会外交事务委员会成员、反对派议员吉德里马斯·耶格林斯卡斯告诉《防务新闻》，到 2026 年将该国的军费开支增加到 GDP 的近 5.4%，即接近 48 亿欧元，代表了跨党派的共识。

他还表示，立陶宛各政治派别都认识到，有必要建立一家国有国防控股公司，代表国家参与诸如豹2A8和CV90等重大采购项目。

“一种方法是利用EPSO-G作为国家控股公司背后新架构的核心，然后围绕它构建其他要素。对于战略国防投资，我们需要国家资金，但也需要私人资本，”立陶宛民主联盟的代表耶格林斯卡斯说道。“我们需要国防控股公司成为一个有效体系的一部分，作为国防资产和工厂的共同所有者，这些工厂既为立陶宛生产，也面向国际市场销售。”

上个月，立陶宛财政部成立了一个工作组，负责协调战略性国防工业项目。除多个政府机构外，EPSO-G 和 AB Giraitės Ginkluotės Gamykla 的代表也受邀加入该工作组。

财政部在一份声明中表示，该集团的成立标志着“政府计划第 322 条实施的第一步，该条规定成立一家国有国防工业控股公司”。

然而，该国反对派认为，随着立陶宛的邻国俄罗斯继续入侵乌克兰，这个波罗的海国家在发展国防工业方面没有多少时间可以浪费，现任内阁应该加快这一进程。

“现任政府令人失望的举措之一是宣布他们希望在2028年底前完成国有控股公司的组建，这太晚了，”耶格林斯卡斯说。“国防和安全必须始终是政府和我所在的反对派的首要任务。”

Jaroslaw Adamowski 是《防务新闻》驻波兰记者。