The Ministry of Defence intends to award BAE Systems Bofors AB a £4.8 million short-term in-service support contract for the British Army’s Archer artillery systems, according to a contract notice.
The notice, published on 5 February, relates to the Interim 155 Capability Project and covers a nine-month support package for the Archer Artillery System. The MoD stated the contract is intended to provide “training, maintenance, repair, obsolescence and configuration management” alongside technical design work and system configuration.
The MoD said the support contract was due to commence in November 2025 and was formally awarded on 13 January 2026. According to the notice, the contract covers “addressing equipment and components via technical design and configuring the Archer Artillery System” as part of maintaining the capability during the short-term period.
The award is expected to be made to BAE Systems Bofors AB, based in Karlskoga, Sweden, with the MoD stating that only one offer was received.
The notice said the contract will be awarded using a negotiated procedure without prior publication, citing “absence of competition for technical reasons.” The MoD stated that the Archer system is “designed, developed and supported solely by BAE Systems Bofors AB,” and that as the design authority and original equipment manufacturer the company holds essential drawings, proprietary technology and specialist tooling.
The MoD added that it does not hold sufficient rights to provide technical data to third parties and stated that no other supplier could provide an acceptable safety case. The contract is valued at £4,800,000 and is to be awarded on the basis of price, the notice stated.
Think we could do with a fair few more of them