A variant of the CV90 armored vehicle of the Norwegian Army. Photo by BAE Systems Hagglunds.

BARDUFOSS, Norway, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- The first batch of new and upgraded CV90 armored combat vehicles has been delivered to the Norwegian Army by BAE Systems.

The batch consisted of 12 vehicles ordered under a 2012 contract between the Swedish subsidiary of BAE Systems Hägglunds and Norway's Defense Logistics Organization.


Under that contract, a total of 144 vehicles are to be delivered -- 41 new CV90s and the modernized CV90s of the Norwegian Army fleet.

"The delivery of these vehicles on schedule and within cost illustrates the highly collaborative, robust relationship between the Norwegian authorities, BAE Systems and its Norwegian industry partners," said Gustafsson-Rask, president of BAE Systems Hägglunds AB. "We look forward to sustaining that relationship as we continue to carry out this contract over many years to come."

The 144 Norwegian vehicles are in five variants: infantry fighting (74 vehicles); reconnaissance (21) ; command-and-control (15); engineering support (16); multi-role (2); and driver training (2).

BAE Systems Hägglunds' Norwegian partners for the project include Kongsberg Defense & Aerospace, Nammo Raufoss AS, CHSnor AS, Moelv, and Ritek AS Levanger.

The CV90 is a tracked vehicle. It weighs as much as 38 tons, depending on configuration, and can be armed with 40mm cannons, machine guns and grenade launchers.