Nioa signs rocket deal with US defence giant L3Harris

Brisbane munitions group NIOA has signed a deal with US defence giant L3Harris Technologies to build components for Australia’s multibillion-dollar guided missile program.

Brisbane munitions group NIOA has signed a deal with US defence giant L3Harris Technologies to build components for Australia’s multibillion-dollar guided missile program.

Under the agreement, NIOA will move to manufacturing critical guided weapons components in Australia with L3Harris subsidiary Aerojet Rocketdyne.

Federal government-owned munitions plants at Benalla in Victoria or Mulwala in NSW are likely sites for any future rocket motor and guided weapons manufacture. NIOA maintains a long-term tenancy at Benalla in addition to 130ha of industrial zoned land immediately adjacent to the facility.

Aerojet Rocketdyne president Ross Niebergall said the company was uniquely positioned to provide the intellectual property for a wide range of propulsion systems used by Australia. “Growing our capability in Australia will provide opportunities for Australian companies to contribute to the global supply chain for guided weapons,” Mr Niebergall said.

The government has committed $2.5bn to build a local industry to improve the Australian Defence Force’s self-reliance and the nation’s export capacity.

NIOA Group chief executive Robert Nioa. Picture: Mark Cranitch

Speaking on the eve of the Indo Pacific 2023 international defence exhibition in Sydney, NIOA chief executive Robert Nioa said ­that as a 100 per cent Australian-owned company, the firm was excited to be entering a strategic agreement to address critical munitions priorities for Australia.

Amid growing military tensions in the Asia-Pacific, the federal government’s defence strategic review calls for the rapid establishment of a domestic guided weapons and explosive manufacturing capability to support Australia’s ongoing needs and increase the total production capacity of our allies.

Defence industry sources said the agreement was a major step towards the manufacture of key missile components for guided weapons essential to the conduct of operations across the Indo-Pacific. They included Lockheed Martin’s Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (GMLRS), Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) and Standard Missile 2, 3 and 6. L3Harris Aerojet Rocketdyne currently manufactures the rocket motor for the Australian-designed Nulka Active Decoy system.

Australia is developing a guided missile program.

“Ultimately we aim to create a multi-user rocket motor facility that will not only support our portfolio of offerings but will also have capacity and flexibility to support future strategic partners to meet guided weapon demands as identified by the Australian Defence Force as well as adjacent industry sectors like space,” Mr Nioa said. “This logical grouping of the main elements of the rocket motor, warhead and booster supply chains can deliver economies of scale that will maintain the production volumes needed to sustain critical skill sets.”

L3Harris, which completed its deal to acquire Aerojet in July, has raised its annual forecasts for revenue and earnings to include the rocket engine maker.

The ongoing war in Ukraine has prompted the restocking of arms and ammunition such as shoulder-fired missiles, artillery and other weaponry, providing US defence companies with lucrative Pentagon contracts.

NIOA, founded in regional Queensland more than 50 years ago, is building stronger links with the US defence industry amid rising military expenditure.

In January it announced it would buy Tennessee-based Barrett Firearms, which rose to prominence in the 1990s after supplying long-range rifles to the US military during Desert Storm.

The acquisition doubled NIOA’s workforce to 400 people and made it a globally renowned weapons manufacturer. Barrett supplies weapons to more than 70 countries around the world approved by the State Department.

Founded near Maryborough in 1973, NIOA is working on a number of defence contracts including ammunition for the Abrams main battle tank.

Originally published as Nioa signs rocket deal with US defence giant L3Harris