Search for a new hand grenade supplier for Spanish army.

The economic affairs directorate of the Spanish Army's logistic support command is actively seeking a new supplier for hand grenades following the failure of the last public tender, as announced on April 4, 2024. The contract, with a budget of 5.5 million euros, encompasses both combat and training grenades, including taxes.
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The different models of ALHAMBRA hand grenade (Picture source: Instalaza)

The last call for this type of equipment, launched in the latter half of the previous year, resulted in no awards for the three proposed lots: combat grenades, reusable training grenades, and training cartridges, totaling 540,942.6 euros, taxes included.

In 2023, the contract for supplying hand grenades was awarded to Instalaza for an amount of 325,635.2 euros. The type of ammunition acquired was the Alhambra D/O (M2) model, the same model previously purchased in 2022 from Instalaza for nearly a million euros, which included the delivery of approximately 10,000 grenades.

It's noteworthy that the Ministry of Defense's Annual Contracting Plan for 2024 forecasts an investment of over 466 million euros in acquiring various types of ammunition for the Army, the Air and Space Force, and the Navy. Among the planned purchases is a lot for hand grenades with a budget of over four million euros, potentially matching the recent announcement.

The Alhambra D/O (M2) grenade, employed in the latest orders, is described by its manufacturer as dual-use, defensive, and offensive, and is touted as the world's only mechano-electronic hand grenade. According to Instalaza, this grenade, which does not require batteries as it generates its energy, is equipped with a misaligned detonator, enhancing safety during transport, storage, and handling. The company further specifies that the electronic fuze allows for double testing of 100% of the grenades during the manufacturing process, achieving a reliability rate of 99.91% (with a 95% Fisher-Snedecor confidence level). The grenade requires no maintenance and has a lifespan of over ten years.

The Alhambra D/O (M2) simplifies logistics by being delivered in a defensive configuration but can be quickly adapted for offensive use by removing the fragmentation sleeve, containing 3,500 hardened steel balls. Its technical specifications include a weight of 400 grams, a height of 100 mm, a diameter of 65 mm, an explosive weight of 104 grams, over 3,500 controlled-size fragments in the defensive configuration, a lethal radius of 0.2 square meters in the defensive configuration at a distance of 10 meters, and a safety radius of 20 meters.

Defense News April 2024