Serbia sells 29 old tanks for over USD 540,000

Serbia has sold 29 tanks of the T-55 make, more than 40 years old, for a total of USD 542,845.42, or 17,010 to 34,000 dollars per piece.

The obsolete tanks were sold at an auction for arms exporters held on July 19. The procedure says that the notice of the best bidders should be announced today July 27, eight days after the sale.

Considering that the data available online say that a T-55 weighs 36 tons, a kilogram was priced at USD 0.52, or around 52 dinars. For the sake of comparison, the wholesale price of iron is around RSD 20, though it also needs to be considered that tanks are also made of other, much more expensive metals, such as lead, copper...

The Ministry of Defense says that the price is 70% higher than the highest price achieved so far.

– The T-55 tanks that were put up for sale had been pronounced obsolete for usage by the Serbian Armed Forces in the period from 2006 till 2011 and attempts at a sale have been made more than 10 times since – the Ministry says.

As they say, under the regulations for the alienation of arms and military equipment, the invitation to the auction had been sent to all companies registered for foreign arms and military equipment trade according to the register of the Ministry of Trade (a total of 217 legal entities).

– The price per piece is 17,010 to 34,000 dollars – the Ministry adds.

Ministarstvo odbrane Republike Srbije

sale of old tanks

T 55 tanks