Aussie munitions firm to build $120m US weapons factory

NIOA will build a $120m weapons factory in the US amid growing calls by Donald Trump for Western countries to spend more on defence.

An artist's impression of the new NIOA factory in the US.

Brisbane-based munitions firm NIOA will build a $120m weapons factory in the US amid growing calls by Donald Trump for Western countries to spend more on defence.

NIOA is now the largest Australian-owned supplier of munitions to the Australian Defence Force after taking over Tennessee-based army sniper rifle supplier Barrett Firearms in 2022 for a reported $200m.

The $US76.4m ($121.8m) industrial precinct in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, to be known as the Barrett Manufacturing & Technology Campus, will be capable of developing and testing an expanding range of weapons, including for the ADF.

NIOA chief executive Rob Nioa said the company looked forward to the positive impact the project would have on the local economy and beyond.

Barrett Firearms rose to prominence in the 1990s after supplying long-range rifles to the US military during Desert Storm.

Founded in 1982, its first rifle was designed by Ronnie Barrett at his dining room table, before being used in a series of high-profile US operations. Barrett now supplies weapons to more than 70 countries around the world approved by the US State Department.

The Barrett M107A1 anti-materiel sniper rifle is one of the weapons systems selected by the ADF under the LAND300 project aiming to ensure Australian ground forces maintain an advantage over potential adversaries beyond 2030.

“This new facility will serve as our primary firearms manufacturing site globally, and demonstrates our commitment as a major American manufacturer catering to both the commercial and military markets,” Mr Nioa said.

Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has lauded the investment by the Australian firm, noting his state had been “shaped by brands like Barrett that have made significant investments in our skilled workforce for decades”.

Rob Nioa, chairman and chief executive of Nioa, Australia's largest privately owned arms supplier. Picture: Supplied

The investment by NIOA also comes as the Trump administration implements tariffs on a range of goods imported into the world’s largest economy in a move to boost the US manufacturing sector, including military industries.

At the same time, the US is pressuring allies including Australia to lift military spending, asking all NATO nations to increase their defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP.

Founded in 1973 in Maryborough, NIOA also has signed an agreement with US company L3Harris Aerojet Rocketdyne to explore the manufacture of critical guided weapons components to support domestic and allied missile production.

The Barrett factory, which will produce commercial firearms, military small arms and ammunition, will be constructed on a 70ha greenfield site close to Barrett’s current base.

The expansion will create close to 200 new jobs and enable the company to meet growing worldwide demand for its products. The facility is planned to open in early 2027.

Barrett chief executive Bryan James said the factory was a significant investment in the company’s growing capabilities for the future.

A 155mm projectile on NIOA’s Maryborough production line.

In a recent speech in Brisbane, Mr Nioa said Australia needed a stronger defence industry base which puts the interests of the ADF and Australia ahead of any other country. “Regardless of the outcome of the next federal election, the government of the day must act with urgency and mobilise our industrial base,” he said.

“Those of us in the defence sector hold to the view that contracts must start flowing soon to build on those policy foundations delivered by the government”, including AUKUS.

Australia, Britain and the US announced the landmark trilateral security agreement in 2021 with the centrepiece, known as Pillar One, being the delivery of nuclear-powered attack submarine capability to Australia.

Mr Nioa said Mr Trump wanted to put American enterprise back in the driving seat of the “country’s national security and prosperity”, which had big ramifications for Australia. “Big change can be exhilarating and maybe a bit scary, but here it comes,” he said.

Last year, NIOA launched a outpost in the heart of the US Army’s armaments development garrison in New Jersey as part of a push into the $US307bn defence sector.

The company’s office at Picatinny, which leads the development of conventional weapon systems and ammunition for the US military, will allow it to work more closely with America’s longstanding allies, particularly its AUKUS partners in the UK and Australia.