Russia’s Main Tank Factory Now a ‘Repairer’ Not ‘Manufacturer’
As it celebrated its 90th anniversary on Sunday, pro-Moscow milbloggers lament the fact that, despite the Kremlin’s propaganda, the Uralvagonzavod tank factory has become little more than a repair shop for tanks damaged in Putin’s war on Ukraine or upgrades to Soviet-era mothballed armor.
Uralvagonzavod (UVZ), Russia's primary tank manufacturer, has been transformed into a "repairer" rather than a "manufacturer" since the closure of Kirov Spetsmash tank plant in 2017. UVZ now faces challenges in both quantity and quality production, struggling to meet the required output. Battle-damaged Russian tanks, including T-90Ms, are reportedly being transported to UVZ for repair and appear to be presented as "new production."
The network of "BTRZ" military armored repair plants has also experienced a decline in capability due to financial and commercial factors. It is speculated that these facilities might have sold their production capacity to other countries like India and Iran. An article published on October 8 highlights the issue of recycled battle-damaged vehicles being labeled as newly manufactured tanks, casting doubt on UVZ's announcement of delivering more T-90M and upgraded T-72B3M tanks equipped with the Arena-M active counter-drone system.
Accurately assessing the war's progress becomes difficult when these recycled vehicles are mistaken for new builds. This is not just about numbers, as it could influence decisions by Ukraine's allies regarding the level of financial and military support they provide.
Written by urgent.news from Kyiv Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
