He Army National boughtbut still can’t use, 89 Agrale Marruá vehicles —which it acquired through a public tender held in February 2025— given that its circulation contravenes a decree of May 2021 referring to the air qualitywhich now the Yamandú Orsi government will modify.
It is about 84 all-terrain vehicles and five ambulancesas detailed in the public tender.
The acquisition was for more than US$ 9 million, at the value of 2024, according to the purchase resolution signed by the then minister Armando Castaingdebat and the former president Luis Lacalle Pou.
The case of these vehicles had been reported in the first instance by TV City, that days ago he indicated that the SUVs were detained at a customs office on the border.
The decree in question, which the Executive Branch will now modify, was issued on May 4, 2021 and in his article 44 does reference to exceptions to the regulations.
There it is established: “Emission standards from fixed sources They will not apply to those vehicles that enter the national territory temporarily, be for competitions, exhibitions or for experimental projects for technology evaluation. The Executive Branch may establish other temporary exceptions.”
For all those cases contemplated in the article, the “temporary authorization of the Ministry of the Environment” is required.
In the article, however, no specific exception is established for military vehicles.
In the last hours, the president of the Defense Commission of the Frente Amplio, León Lev, informed his coreligionists about the progress on this issue.
He pointed out, according to the message he accessed The Observerthat the Ministry of Industry had already approved the vehicles and? Now the “Environmental approval via exceptional decree was being processed because they were military vehicles.” and in general going out for peace missions where standards change.
The bidding document of the Ministry of National Defense that led to this acquisition established the need to have “multipurpose tactical vehicles and tactical ambulances“for the General Command of the Army.
Several companies participated in the tender, but only one—after the Defense analysis—was in a position to technically comply with the request.
