A new explosives facility at Glascoed, south Wales, crucial for boosting UK munitions production, remains unopened more than six months after its planned launch. This delay adds to a series of setbacks impacting the armed forces. The factory was intended to increase Britain’s capacity to manufacture artillery shells by sixteenfold, aiming to replenish dwindling stocks and enhance supplies for Ukraine.

Production at the Glascoed facility was initially scheduled to commence last summer but has not yet begun. BAE Systems, Europe’s largest arms maker and owner of the factory, confirmed the delay. The company stated that the postponement was due to a strategic decision made mid-construction in 2025 to double the facility's output capacity. The Glascoed complex, a sprawling munitions site, has been operational since 1940 and covers approximately 405 hectares (1,000 acres) in Monmouthshire, employing around 870 people. While ammunition components are produced at other sites, like Washington in north-east England, they are sent to Glascoed for explosive filling. The new automated facility is not expected to create new jobs and is part of a broader £150 million investment by BAE Systems in munitions sites.

Ministers are keen to significantly increase Britain’s domestic explosives manufacturing capabilities to reduce dependence on other nations for ammunition. Historically, BAE imported RDX explosives, vital for artillery shells, from countries such as the US and France. Concerns over future reliance on US defence equipment have been amplified by geopolitical uncertainties, including Donald Trump’s stance on Ukraine and threats of tariffs on NATO countries. BAE has stated that the new Glascoed facility will drastically increase the production of 155mm artillery rounds, delivering sixteen times the volume produced in 2023. These NATO-standard shells are typically fired from mobile field guns.

Defence analyst Francis Tusa highlighted the critical role of 155mm rounds, calling them “the bedrock of all armies when they go into war,” making adequate stocks “essential.” He described the failure to open Glascoed on schedule as a significant blow and expressed frustration, particularly for the British army. BAE was previously producing only 3,000-5,000 of these rounds annually, meaning that even a sixteenfold increase would only bring the total to about 80,000 per year. In stark contrast, Germany’s leading arms manufacturer, Rheinmetall, opened a new factory last year aiming to produce 1.1 million rounds by 2027. Tusa warned that the lack of a ramp-up in UK onshore 155mm ammunition production means that any army deployments to eastern Europe, such as reinforcements to Estonia, would currently have enough ammunition for only a few days, or perhaps a month with 64,000 shells.

The delay at Glascoed coincides with broader government indecision regarding military spending. The defence investment plan, initially anticipated last autumn, has faced repeated deferrals amid warnings of a £28 billion funding gap for the armed forces over the next four years. This has already led to the postponement of contracts for Britain’s next-generation fighter jet programme, Tempest, and for new military helicopters, raising concerns about the future of 3,000 jobs at Leonardo’s factory in Yeovil.

Luke Pollard, Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, stressed the need for increased domestic production of “energetics,” the explosive components in weapon systems. A spokesperson for BAE Systems confirmed that their fully automated munitions facility is structurally complete and has entered the testing phase, reiterating that the decision to double output capacity impacted the schedule. They emphasized the state-of-the-art nature of the facility and the necessity of ensuring “absolute precision and safety.” BAE continues to supply munitions through existing facilities but declined to comment on a new opening date for the Glascoed factory. Separately, the government has announced plans for six additional new munitions factories in the coming years, though specific details on their locations are yet to be provided. A government spokesperson stated that speculation on munitions stockpiles benefits adversaries and affirmed a sustained increase in defence spending, including investment in UK munitions production to support the armed forces. They also asserted that Glascoed's ongoing development has not affected the UK's ability to support Ukraine.