The British government is taking steps to rebuild its domestic military supply chain to end a two-decade reliance on foreign military explosives. Defense Minister John Healey will announce the selection of 13 potential new military factories across the country on Wednesday, laying the foundation for establishing a “normal” ammunition production capacity for the British military.
According to sources cited by Bloomberg, the 13 candidate locations identified by the UK for new military factories include Grangemouth in Scotland, Teesside in the northeast of England, and Milford Haven in Wales.
The first factory is expected to start construction next year, but the government has not yet disclosed a production schedule. These new facilities will produce military ammunition, propellants, explosives, and energetics, which are core components of weapon systems.
A report released on the same day by the British Parliament’s Defense Committee pointed out that the European military supply chain still heavily relies on the United States, and domestic production capacity and supply chain pressures in the UK have increased further following the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Since the closure of the last relevant factory in 2005, the UK’s domestic production capacity for military explosives has completely disappeared. At that time, the Labour government believed that importing foreign supplies could meet the demand. Now, the UK is attempting to reverse this policy legacy issue.
Furthermore, US President Trump has repeatedly urged Europe to bear more defense costs on its own and has publicly hinted at the possibility of reducing US capabilities deployed in Europe, prompting the UK to emphasize the importance of rebuilding independent military production lines.
Nitrocellulose, a key material in some weapons derived from cotton fibers, is mainly supplied by China, creating a strategic bottleneck for Western countries when it comes to boosting ammunition production capacity.
British defense giant BAE Systems Plc is developing new technologies in an attempt to produce explosive materials that do not rely on nitrocellulose, aiming to reduce supply chain risks.
According to Reuters, the UK government committed £1.5 billion (about $1.97 billion) in June this year for ammunition and related component production. The new factories are expected to create at least 1,000 job opportunities, with feasibility studies and engineering designs already underway.
This week, the UK will also inaugurate two new drone factories in the southwest of England as part of the “defense growth deals” supported by a £250 million investment from the government.
Healey is set to highlight in his speech that the UK will not revert to the military state of “aging equipment and insufficient funds” from the past and note that the government is taking structural measures to restore domestic defense capabilities.