Estonia Latest to Join Europe’s Rush to Make 155mm Artillery Ammo

Estonia is the latest Eastern European country to step up weapons production and in particular for 155mm artillery ammunition that has proved so essential in combating current and potential Russian aggression.

The government in Tallinn announced this week the setting up of a new explosives factory and manufacturing company “Hexest AS” to make RDX / Hexogen, an essential explosive component along with TNT for the filling of 155 artillery ammunition. Earlier this year Estonia received the first batch of a planned 18 Caesar 155mm self-propelled howitzers assigned to the newly created 3rd Self-propelled Artillery Battalion.

In announcing the plan, Hanno Pevkur, Estonia’s Defense Minister 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. This explosives plant will make Estonia more attractive as a location for the defense industry.”

The government statement said that the Ämari RDX factory was expected to come online in 2028 to which it was making a €7.2 million ($8.2 million) contribution to “cover the costs of the technical design and preparatory activities… [with] the final investment decision based on its results.” While the company will operate the facility but it will remain under the control of Estonia’s Ministry of Defense.

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The Hexest plant is just the latest in Estonia’s plans to expand its domestic ammunition production at the newly created defense industry park located in Ämari about 40 kilometers (25 miles) southwest of the capital. The government is currently working to attract both domestic and foreign weapons, ammunition and military equipment manufacturers to Estonia in what a spokesperson said would be “a conducive environment.”

This unprecedented expansion of Estonia’s defense industry follows similar progression in Lithuania where, in partnership with Rheinmetall, a new 155mm artillery ammunition plant is being constructed in Baisogala with the aim of starting production mid-2026. The government is also campaigning to attract foreign defense industry companies to set up base in Lithuania with offers of support including financial assistance.

In the third Baltic nation, the Latvian government is investing €27 million ($31 million) in the state-owned SIA VAK corporation to construct a large-caliber ammunition and explosive production plant in Iecava, which should be operational by the end of 2026.

In Poland the authorities are investing around 2.8 billion złoty  ($740 million) in expanding domestic ammunition production also largely focused on 155mm artillery ammunition primarily to serve its growing fleet of South Korean designed K9 and Krab self-propelled howitzers.

This rush to rearm particularly among those nations that make up NATO’s eastern flank is all sparked off by the war in Ukraine where, again with the support of Rheinmetall and foreign investment, Kyiv is stepping up production of all types of ammunition and missiles.

Here too there is an emphasis on 155mm artillery ammunition where more than 2.5 million rounds have been produced since the start of 2024 – essential to feed the several hundred 155mm howitzers Ukraine has received from Western allies since the 2022 full-scale invasion.