Delivery of the first batch of 180 K2 tanks, prepared in South Korea by Hyundai Rotem for Poland, has now been completed.
The last twenty models have arrived in the port of Gdynia and have been transferred to the units of the 16th Pomeranian Mechanized Division.
These 180 K2’s were ordered in 2022, and the deadline for their delivery had been set for the end of 2025.
#### New K2GF and First K2PL
Now, Hyundai Rotem is focused on the assembly of the next 180 K2GF and K2PL tanks; this latest version includes the installation of equipment developed and produced in Poland as part of a program involving the Polish national industry, which will set up a production line for these tanks.
Under this contract worth $6.5 billion, Hyundai Rotem will assemble one hundred and sixteen tanks in the current K2GF configuration and the first three in the K2PL version.
The remaining sixty-one K2PL’s will be assembled by Zakłady Mechaniczne “Bumar-Łabędy” SA and delivered from 2028 onwards.
#### K2PL Characteristics and Special Versions of K2
The K2PL tanks will be equipped with additional protections, including an Active Vehicle Protection System, an anti-drone system, and additional armor.
The Polish Army will also receive eighty-one K2 variants for rescue and recovery (thirty-one units), engineering and bridge laying (twenty-five units each) between 2029-2031.
At the end of the purchase programs in South Korea and construction in Poland, the Warsaw Army will have about 1,000 K2PL and K2 tanks; the latter are expected to undergo a subsequent update to bring them to the PL standard.
Source: Polish National Defense Ministry Armament Agency
Photo credit: @16th Mechanized Division Polish Army
