The Federal Court of Auditors criticizes that the technical maturity of the weapon system is not yet certain.
(Photo: imago images/Chris Emil Janssen)
Berlin The Budget Committee of the Bundestag approved the procurement of additional Puma armored personnel carriers on Wednesday, although the Federal Audit Office warns of technical and financial risks. Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) campaigned for the purchase in front of the MPs.
The housekeepers agreed to order 50 additional examples of the tank built by Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) and Rheinmetall. Including accessories, the purchase should cost around 1.1 billion euros. 388 million euros are earmarked for price increases and the unforeseen. The money comes from the 100 billion euro special fund for the Bundeswehr.
At the end of last year, the Puma made negative headlines because all 18 tanks used in an exercise failed one after the other. The Defense Minister at the time, Christine Lambrecht (SPD), initially stopped both the modernization of vehicles that had already been delivered and the purchase of additional tanks.
After the industry had promised to eliminate technical errors and the Bundeswehr had promised more intensive training of the soldiers on the modern weapon system, 50 more tanks are now to be purchased. The framework agreement also provides for the option of purchasing up to 179 additional vehicles, bringing the total volume to just under 4.8 billion euros.
The Pumas are intended to replace the almost 50-year-old Marder armored personnel carriers that are still in use. The Ministry of Defense has registered a need for 111 of the modern weapon systems, but initially only just under half of this is to be covered. However, the Federal Court of Auditors continues to register reservations. The authority sees “too many technical and budgetary risks” that should first be eliminated before a subsequent purchase. This emerges from a report by the Court of Auditors to the Budget Committee of the Bundestag, which is available to the Handelsblatt.
The household watchdog had recommended waiting for the technical upgrade to the modernized S1 variant before purchasing additional copies. Instead of in March, as originally planned, the correspondingly converted vehicles would only be delivered in October, the auditors write. “The technical maturity is therefore not yet certain.”
Wait until the modernized tanks are ready for action
The Federal Court of Auditors also complained that the purchase contract was based on an outdated price calculation from December 2021. Within a year, the price increase is not five percent, as calculated by the Ministry of Defense, but 12.8 percent.
Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) campaigned for the purchase in front of the MPs.
(Photo: Getty Images)
The Federal Ministry of Finance also points this out in its submission to the Budget Committee. Because the contract calculated on the basis of the prices from December 2021 is only now being presented, there has already been a cost increase of 138 million euros for the 50 Pumas.
In addition, the Ministry of Finance criticizes that the “required range of functions” for the 350 tanks that have already been delivered and that have been introduced to the troops since 2015 have not yet been achieved. The modernization of the existing vehicles for around two billion euros will last until 2029. It would therefore be “from today’s perspective a less risky scenario” to wait with the ordering of new vehicles until the retrofitted Pumas had proven their readiness for use.
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When buying the new Puma tanks, there was a risk of significant cost increases, said Green Housekeeper Sebastian Schäfer. “In order to reduce equipment gaps in the Bundeswehr, we have nevertheless initiated the procurement.” However, the budget committee will follow the project closely. Industry and the Ministry of Defense would have to ensure the comprehensive functionality of the weapon system.
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So far, the development and procurement of modern armored personnel carriers have cost 7.8 billion euros. With the 50 new Pumas, the volume increases to 9.3 billion euros. The majority of the costs for the planned acquisition will be incurred in the 2025 and 2026 budget years.
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