On 17 June, the first day of the Eurosatory 2024 defence exhibition in Paris, French mobility specialist Texelis and Indonesia’s PT Sentra Surya Ekajaya (PT SSE) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on the development of 4×4, 6×6 and 8×8 vehicles.
Under the MoU Texelis will be supporting PT SSE’s efforts to develop its 4×4 range; develop, qualify and produce its new range of 6×6 vehicles; and work towards new mobility solutions for 8×8 vehicles, both for the Indonesian market and for export.
The MoU states that SSE and Texelis aim to explore development, marketing, sale and production opportunities to collaborate on the design of 4×4, 6×6 and 8×8 mobility solutions. The joint collaboration will leverage SSE expertise in producing armoured vehicles for the Indonesian market as well as Texelis knowhow in developing 4×4, 6×6 and 8×8 mobility solutions for military and special-purpose vehicles in the French and wider European market.
“In 2023 Texelis introduced Celeris: its mobility offer for turnkey mobility,” Texelis stated in a 17 June press release. “Very soon after that launch Texelis and PT SSE announced a new partnership agreement to develop an armoured personnel carrier (APC) for the Indonesian National Armed Forces based on Celeris, with a first prototype to be presented by the end of 2024: a testament to Celeris’ readiness as well as both companies’ will to move forward on these important programmes.
“Already an esteemed client of the Celeris 4×4, PT SSE decided to utilise a similar framework to build a heavier 6×6 platform,” the company added.
On the back of its relationship with PT SSE, Texelis announced the launch of its Celeris 6×6 mobility solution at Eurosatory 2024. The solution aims at developing vehicles ranging from 18 to 24 tonnes, allowing for a wide range of vehicle designs and architectures. The 6×6 offering retains the Celeris philosophy of full support from vehicle design to testing and qualification, as well as building on proven mobility kits, available in a very short time, to allow partners to develop their military vehicle portfolios.
Speaking to ESD at Eurosatory 2024 on 19 June, Texelis spokesman Marin Tollet explained that, while the Celeris 6×6 mobility solution is essentially an expansion of the Celeris 4×4 offering with an extra axle and other options, development of an 8×8 mobility solution will effectively be a new undertaking since it requires a completely different architecture.
Tollet noted that, while the company’s initial prospective partners are looking to use the Celeris 6×6 solution to develop armoured personnel carriers, the 6×6 solution “drastically increases the variety of solutions we could be integrating”, which could even include platforms like self-propelled guns.
“We are definitely interested in any mobility topic, in all variants,” he said. “Also, we are not limiting ourselves to wheeled vehicles.”
Tollet noted that all of Texelis’ success thus far “originates from one job well done, which is Serval [the Lightweight Multirole Armoured Vehicle, or VBMR-L, that Texelis developed for the French Army in partnership with Nexter].
“I haven’t seen many programmes go so well,” he said.
The fact that all of Texelis’ mobility solutions are kit based means they can readily be exported to produce new, highly mobile military vehicles in conjunction with foreign partners.
“We are an enabler,” said Tollet. “It’s a matter of growing together; that is what we do.”
A key selling point for Texelis’ mobility offerings is the rapidity with which they allow vehicles to be developed. Citing the company’s partnership with PT SSE as an example, Tollet pointed out, “The first contact, just the discussion, regarding the 6×6 was last summer; the first prototype will be produced by the winter of 2024.”
A further key feature of the Texelis offering, Tollet noted, is the guarantee of long-term co-operation. “We are going to be supporting [these vehicles] for 40 years,” he said. “We won’t fail.”
