Ukroboronprom Deputy Director General for foreign economic activity Denis Hurak has stated that a contract for supplying Oplot main battle tanks to Thailand, which was signed in 2011, will be fulfilled by mid-2017.
Hurak added that the third batch of Oplot tanks was delivered to the customer in July this year.
Kharkiv-based state enterprise Malyshev Plant reported in early July that it had completed production of the third batch of Oplot tanks and intended to begin manufacturing the fourth batch.
Delivery deadlines for the supply of Oplot tanks to Thailand, agreed to between both the parties, have been repeatedly violated.
In particular, the delivery of the third batch of Oplot tanks to Thailand should have been carried out by the end of 2015 according to the given schedule. But in December 2015, foreign media reported about the plans of Thai authorities to replace Ukrainian tanks with similar models from Russia and China due to the inability of the Ukrainian side to meet delivery deadlines. Representatives of the Ukrainian company denied those statements, arguing that this was false information spread by competitors.
Tank T-84 “Oplot”
Earlier this year, Ukroboronprom General Director Roman Romanov stated that the delivery of the third batch of Oplot tanks, under contract with Thailand, had been postponed ”for the near future.” However, completion of the production of the tanks was later announced in June. The contract on the supply of 49 Oplot tanks to Thailand, worth US$250 million, was signed in 2011.
In addition, the management of Ukroboronprom has repeatedly reported difficulties in the production of tanks, adding that private enterprises have been involved in the manufacturing process.
The Ukrainian army has 10 Oplot tanks.
