The Army has awarded BAE Systems $575 million in contract modifications to move its Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle (AMPV) into low-rate initial production, the company said Tuesday.

The latest deals bring the total for LRIP to $873 million as the Army looks to move forward with its program to replace Armored Brigade Combat Teams’ M113 armored personnel carriers.

BAE Systems’ Armored Multipurpose Vehicle (AMPV)

The two contracts include a $128 million deal awarded in January, and a $447 million contract in February, according to BAE Systems.

“Moving into this phase of the AMPV program is exciting because it brings soldiers one step closer to deploying this critical capability for completing their missions and coming home safely,” Bill Sheehy, director of BAE Systems’ AMPV program, said in a statement. “We have been preparing for this moment and are ready to take this program to the next stage.”

The latest contracts cover 300 vehicles with deliveries of the first LRIP units to begin in spring 2020, a BAE Systems spokesman told Defense Daily.

LRIP is expected to cover 551 units of the total 2,907 vehicles under the AMPV program.

The Army delivered a Milestone C approval decision for AMPV in late December and indicated LRIP will likely cover 551 of the total 2,907 vehicles under the program, according to a statement in January. First units will be equipped with AMPVS in 2021.