Government authorizes 82.35 million to modernize the Army's Leopard 2A6 tanks

The Council of Ministers has authorized the Army to assume the multi-year obligation and carry out the expenditure for the modernization of the Leopard 2A6 Main Battle Tank Weapon System up to a maximum global amount of €82,350,000.00, plus value-added tax at the legal rate in force. The authorization is contained in Council of Ministers Resolution No. 210/2026, published in the Diário da República, 1st series, no. 212, of November 2, 2026, and takes effect from the date of its approval, October 22.

The decree was signed at the Presidency of the Council of Ministers by Paulo Artur dos Santos de Castro de Campos Rangel, Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, “on behalf of the Prime Minister.” It is based, among others, on Organic Law No. 1/2023, of August 17, Decree-Law No. 197/99, of June 8, Law No. 8/2012, of February 21, Decree-Law No. 127/2012, of June 21, and paragraph g) of Article 199 of the Constitution. The Government justifies the resolution by the fact that the contract to be signed implies an obligation spanning more than one economic year and by the circumstance that the expenditure is supported, in addition to the Military Programming Law, by appropriations entered in the 2026 State Budget.

A 2008 fleet and difficult-to-obtain spare parts

The Leopard 2A6 entered service in the Portuguese Army in 2008, and its age now translates into the obsolescence of various items and components. Since 2023, ongoing military conflicts have caused a substantial increase in delivery times for the acquisition of repair services and goods, as well as maintenance services contracted directly from specialist companies supporting military technicians and mechanics.

Faced with the difficulty of acquiring spare parts, the Army sought alternatives and joined, in January 2026, the Leopard Project, within the framework of the Land Combat Vehicles Support Partnership of the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. According to the preamble of the resolution, this partnership allows for the contracting of maintenance from entities with recognized know-how and the execution of the Midlife Upgrade program, which covers general repair and modernization activities required by logistical and operational imperatives.

Costs split until 2031

The resolution sets annual expenditure limits, without prejudice to the balance determined in previous years, which may be added to the amounts from 2027 to 2031:

• 2026 — €26,000,000.00
• 2027 — €0.00
• 2028 — €0.00
• 2029 — €14,199,500.00
• 2030 — €24,900,500.00
• 2031 — €17,250,000.00

The funding combines the Military Programming Law, which provides for 56.85 million euros between 2026 and 2031 under the “Land Force Logistic Support” capacity, “Systems Support” project, with an immediate reinforcement of 25.5 million euros from State Budget funds allocated to the Army for 2026 — totaling the 26 million planned for this year.

Logistic package and option for the entire fleet

In addition to the modernization program, the process covers the acquisition of an associated logistic package, consisting of:

• diagnostic tools and special equipment;
• technical manuals;
• training.

The contract may also include a reference to the eventual extension of the program’s execution to all vehicles in the fleet, provided it is expressly conditioned upon prior expenditure authorization under the law.

Without central reinforcements and with delegated powers

The expenses are met by funds from the Army’s operating budget, under funding source 311 — tax revenues not allocated to co-financed projects — and, in subsequent years, also under source 513 — own revenues of the year from other origins. The resolution expressly excludes any reinforcement using provisional allocations or other centralized allocations from the Ministry of Finance, as well as chapter 60 managed by the Treasury and Finance Entity, and determines that the assumption of the expense does not grant the right to an additional ceiling between 2027 and 2031. The powers to perform subsequent acts are delegated, with the possibility of sub-delegation, to the member of the Government responsible for the area of national defense.

The modernization is presented in the decree as indispensable and inevitable to ensure the continued service of the current Leopard 2A6 fleet, in response to the new nature of the threat and the requirements demanded by NATO. For readers, the resolution means that the largest investment in the armored land component is committed for several years, with the costs concentrated in 2026, 2029, 2030, and 2031, and with no room for central budget reinforcements.

Source: Diário da República, 1st series, no. 212, of November 2, 2026, Presidency of the Council of Ministers, pgs. 1-3 (official reference: Council of Ministers Resolution no. 210/2026).