US Approves Excalibur Guided Artillery Round for Netherlands

The United States has given its nod for the sale of 199 Excalibur guided artillery rounds and related equipment to Netherlands for an estimated cost of $40.55 million.

"The Government of the Netherlands has requested to buy one hundred ninety-nine (199) Excalibur Increment IB M982Al tactical projectiles. Also included with this request is U.S. Government technical assistance, training, associated support equipment, and other related elements of logistics and program support. The total estimated program cost is $40.55 million," Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced Friday.

The Netherlands will integrate these munitions with conventional artillery units equipped with the PzH2000NL self-propelled howitzer (SPH) to provide precision fires capability in order to reduce collateral damage and increase effectiveness in various areas of operation.

The prime contractor will be the Raytheon Company, Tucson, AZ. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale, the DSCA release said.