Russian tanks face depletion by 2025 amidst high losses
According to an analysis by the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Russian Federation Army is relying on equipment from storage facilities. Experts estimate that Russia's storage facilities will be empty by autumn 2025 at the current rate of losses.
Many experts are significantly interested in the remaining equipment in Russian storage needed for battles in Ukraine. They continuously analyze the numbers of lost vehicles and those still waiting to be deployed to the front. According to ISW analysts, the Russian army relies mainly on repaired tanks taken from storage. This approach is an attempt to replace lost equipment. The aggressor's army will not have sufficient equipment in the long term.
Losses match production
Recently, Viktor Kevliuk, an expert from the Ukrainian Defense Strategies Center, cited by the Ukrainian agency Unian, discussed Russia's losses. He stated that the Russian Federation currently produces and refurbishes up to 160 tanks monthly. This indicates that local troops acquire about 1,920 tanks annually. This number aligns with the number of tanks destroyed in the same period.
According to data from the portal Oryx, Russian troops have lost 3,558 tanks (in practice, there might be more) since the outbreak of the full-scale war, which is approximately the same as the number of tanks the Russian Federation could have produced and refurbished during this period.
According to Kevliuk, it is also significant that, essentially, Russia does not have large production capabilities for tanks. His cal
culations indicate that the Russian defence industry produced about 560 tanks. The remaining units are from storage reserves. According to Unian, Russian reserves will be depleted by autumn 2025 if the pace of production and losses continues.
Russian tank losses
Previous calculations have shown that Russians are losing a significant number of tanks from the T-90 family, including the latest model, the T-90M Proryv, which has a 125 mm 2A46M-5 calibre gun, an improved fire control system, and reinforced reactive armour Relikt.
Additionally, Russians regularly lose other valuable constructions, such as the T-80BVM and T-72B3. The former is primarily characterized by durable armour. Both, however, feature advanced optoelectronics, which, in combination with efficient guns, enable effective detection and elimination of enemy vehicles on the front. It’s no wonder that Ukrainians have taken a liking to destroying these tanks. The T-72 tanks of the Russian Federation army are also frequently destroyed.
