Minden, LA, Sept. 08, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Estes Energetics is excited to announce the restart of US black powder production on June 1st, 2023 and the first shipments to customers in August. Estes Energetics purchased the plant in January 2022 and partnered with the Department of Defense’s Manufacturing Capability Expansion & Investment Prioritization (MCEIP) office through its Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III authority to rebuild and modernize the only black powder manufacturing plant in the US. “Through our partnership with MCEIP, the US Army, and others in the black powder community, we were able to save this critical domestic industrial base asset and start on a path to modernization,” said Karl Kulling, CEO of Estes Energetics.
As the only remaining commercial black powder factory in the United States, this plant produces GOEX and Olde Eynsford brands of black powder, which are highly regarded by competitive and recreational shooters, re-enactors, muzzleloading hunters, and fireworks manufacturers. GOEX black powder also propels the model rocket motors of sister company Estes Industries, the leading model rocket brand, and supports the needs of the U.S. military. Black powder is a critical chemical in artillery charges, signals, flares, and numerous other weapons systems. “Investing in the GOEX plant is central to MCEIP’s mission to reestablish and strengthen critical and strategic domestic production,” said Anthony Di Stasio, Director of MCEIP.
GOEX traces its roots back to 1802, when DuPont opened the country’s first black powder plant in Delaware. DuPont’s Belin plant in Pennsylvania became part of GOEX in the early 1970s. In 1997, the operations of GOEX were moved to Minden, Louisiana. Estes Energetics is continuing this 220-year legacy of high-quality American-made black powder, bringing innovation and full-spectrum engineering capability to fortify safety and quality.
About Estes Energetics
Estes Energetics is a defense and industrial company spun off from Estes Industries in 2021 that researches, designs, engineers, manufactures, tests, and integrates solid-propellant rocket motors, energetics and associated products & technologies for government and commercial applications, including consumer goods. It combines practical solutions with advanced research and development. Estes Energetics has engineering, manufacturing, and test facilities in Penrose, Colorado and in Minden, Louisiana. To learn more about Estes Energetics, please visit https://estesenergetics.com/, and https://goexpowder.com for more information on GOEX black powder.
