The NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) has delivered the final refurbished PzH 2000 self-propelled howitzer to the Lithuanian Armed Forces.
The final of overall 18 howitzers to undergo the upgrade was handed over earlier this month, and will join the country’s Artillery Battalion in Rukla.
Support provided by NSPA included procurement of ammunition, customization and modernization of M577 and BPz2 support vehicles, implementation of a new fire control system, and integration and acquisition of new sensors and optronics for forward observers and tactical air control parties.
NSPA awarded a 10.5 million euro contract to Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, the original equipment manufacturer, in 2017 to carry out the work.
The PzH 2000 is a self-propelled 155mm howitzer developed by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann in partnership with Rheinmetall in the 1990’s for Germany, the Netherlands, Greece, and Italy. It is one of the most advanced self-propelled howitzers in the world capable of providing sustained artillery coverage for more than 50km.
PzH 2000 represents a significant upgrade to the 105mm howitzers that were previously fielded by Lithuania and had an effective range of 11 kilometers.
Lithuania purchased a total of 21 PzH 2000 that were formerly in service with the German Army. The 58.3 million euro contract from September 2015 included two training units and three systems that were to be used as spares.
