Ukraine is preparing to send another batch of 21 BTR armored personnel carriers assembled by domestic defense industry enterprises to Thailand under a contract with the Royal Thai Army.
The customer recently signed an acceptance certificate for 21 Ukrainian BTRs, the press service of the state-run company Ukrspecexport told Interfax-Ukraine on Tuesday referring to the company’s Director General Serhiy Hromov.
The batch includes 15 BTR-3E1s and six BTR-3RKs, which are modifications of the BTR-3 armored personnel carriers. The BTRs are to be shipped from Odesa by mid-August. When the armored personnel carriers arrive in Thailand in September, they will undergo tests before being finally accepted by the customer.
Ukroboronprom is currently studying the possibility of establishing a service center in Thailand for the maintenance of Ukrainian-produced military equipment.
As reported, Ukraine has been supplying BTR-3E1 armored personnel carriers to Thailand since September 2010.
The contracts for supplies of 233 Ukrainian BTR-3E1s to Thailand concluded in 2006 and 2011 were worth around $270 million, according to open sources.
The main executors of the contracts are Kharkiv-based Morozov Design, as well as Kyiv and Zhytomyr mechanical repair plants, which belong to the Ukroboronprom concern.
The sides are also discussing the possibility of joint assembly of BTR-3E1s in Thailand.
BTR-3E1 is the latest improved version of the BTR-3E.
In September 2011, the countries signed a contract on supplies of 49 Ukrainian Oplot main battle tanks to Thailand.