Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania jointly procuring explosive charges

TALLINN - The Estonian Center for Defense Investment (RKIK) has signed a framework agreement, according to which the Baltic states are to jointly procure defense and bursting charges.

The total volume of the framework agreement is EUR 11.7 million and the contract has been concluded for seven years, spokespeople for RKIK said in Monday.

"The procurements conducted jointly by the Baltic states enable to consolidate the three states' needs and achieve savings. The jointly procured combat equipment will also strengthen allied relations and enable cross-utilization and supporting each other," Ramil Lipp, head of weaponry at the RKIK, said.

The five-part procurement concerned various types of explosive charges - anti-personnel charges, defense charges against heavy forces, demolition charges, road culvert charges and signal charges.

The objective of the procurement is to restock the explosives and replace ageing equipment, combat engineering inspector the of Estonian defense forces, Major Hannes Liim, said.

"The acquisition of new charges increases our units' defense capability and their movement speed through various types of obstacles," he added.

In the first four parts of the procurement, the winning bid was jointly made by Estonian companies Eesti Arsenal OU ja Nitrotol OU. Eesti Arsenal OU is a long-term partner of the defense forces in the supply of explosives. In the fifth part of the procurement, framework agreements were signed with two different companies - Rheinmetall Waffe Munition GmbH (RWM) and WesCom Signal & Rescue Germany GmbH.