US Ballistic signs contract for NATO ammunition plant in Romania, defense minister says

American company US Ballistic has signed a contract to establish a new ammunition factory at the UM Sadu defense plant in Gorj County, interim defense minister Radu Miruță announced. The facility will produce NATO-standard 155 mm ammunition.

“A huge piece of news: today, in Târgu Jiu, the contract was signed with the American company US Ballistic for a new ammunition production plant,” Miruță wrote on Facebook.

According to him, the company plans to invest USD 25 million over the next five years and initially employ 150 people during the project’s first two years. The workforce is expected to expand gradually over the following four years.

The project also includes upgrades to storage facilities, roads, utilities, and other infrastructure that will remain the property of UM Sadu. The technology transferred as part of the investment will also remain at the Romanian plant, according to the minister.

UM Sadu is set to receive an additional EUR 20 million in rent over the next decade, with the first year paid in advance. Radu Miruță said the currently underused site had been costing approximately EUR 500,000 annually for security alone.

“The American company USBL will produce NATO-standard 155 mm ammunition here, representing a major leap in technology and ambition for UM Sadu,” Miruță said. “Sadu is returning to where it belongs: Romania’s defense industry.”

In related news, Romanian defense manufacturer Uzina Mecanică Cugir, or UM Cugir, also announced recently that it signed a EUR 54 million contract for specialized machinery used to manufacture components for 12.7 x 99 mm NATO-standard ammunition. The contract was signed on September 11 as part of a broader modernization programme estimated at RON 552.9 million.