The Government of Estonia authorised the Minister of Finance to establish a company Hexest AS to build a military explosives factory in Estonia. The new company will be established in the coming weeks and will be handed over to the Ministry of Defence in up to six months.

According to the Minister of Defence Hanno Pevkur, the establishment of the plant is an important step in the development of the Estonian defence industry, as there is a significant shortage of explosives production capacity in Europe.

“Establishing an explosives plant in Estonia will be a strong added value for the Defence Industrial Park and the ammunition producers that will be operating there,” he said. “There is a shortage of explosives production capacity in Europe, so building new capacity is essential to ensure security of supply for companies in Estonia and the wider region. The explosives plant will make Estonia more attractive as a location for the defence industry.”

The Hexest plant will be built on the Defence Industry Park´s territory

At first, the Estonian state will own all the shares in the company Hexest, but the plan is to involve a strategic investor in the future. An initial contribution of up to €7.2 million will be made to cover the costs of the technical design and preparatory activities. The technical design will take about a year to complete, and the final investment decision will be based on its results.

According to plans, the explosives plant will be built on the territory of the Defence Industrial Park, and production is expected to start in 2028. The plant will produce RDX-type explosives, used in missiles, mines and missile heads, for example. Both Estonian and European ammunition manufacturers are seen as the main clients.

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