A new military manufacturing facility being built in the forests of Iecava parish is expected to employ around 20 people and produce approximately 50,000 modular propellant charges per year, Ingrīda Ķirse, board member of Latvia’s State Defence Corporation, told journalists on Thursday.
Construction of the plant officially began today with the ceremonial laying of a time capsule and a message for future generations in the building’s foundations.
The future factory, surrounded by a barbed-wire fence, is located relatively close to Riga but is being built deep in the forest, several kilometres from the nearest residential buildings and major roads. Nearby are also military areas used, among other things, for training purposes, journalists observed.
Ķirse explained that the factory will produce canister-like modular propellant charges, which are placed beneath an artillery shell. When the charge burns, it propels the shell out of the barrel.
The factory’s output will primarily be intended for the Latvian Armed Forces,
while the remaining production will be exported to partner countries within NATO. In total, the plant is expected to manufacture around 50,000 charges annually.
Only local employees will work at the factory. Although construction is still ongoing, the corporation will begin assembling the production team in parallel. The workforce will consist of approximately 20–25 specialists of various levels. Recruitment is expected to be completed by mid-summer, as the plant is scheduled to begin operations in the third quarter of this year.
Raw materials for production will be supplied by foreign partners within the consortium. Ķirse emphasized that the project is designed not only to strengthen the security of ammunition supply chains, but also to benefit Latvia’s economy. “Yes, we are planning to operate with turnover and profit,” she said, noting that the majority of the project is financed by the Latvian state, with the remainder funded by the European Union.
Asked why the factory is being built in such a remote and restricted location, Ķirse explained that
industrial facilities of this type are not constructed in city centres,
and given that this is a military production project, strict security requirements must be met. For this reason, the site is located away from populated areas.
Despite the specific security requirements, the corporation believes that Latvia has domestic construction companies with the necessary experience and expertise to carry out such projects. “There is sufficient competition and a choice of capable contractors,” Ķirse added.
The 155-millimetre modular propellant charge factory is being developed in cooperation with Finnish and Norwegian company Nammo, as well as French-Italian defence group KNDS.
National funding for the “Rollo” project amounts to 26 million euros, while European funding totals 41 million euros, although the Ministry of Defence has noted that not all of this EU funding is allocated directly to Latvia.
The land on which the factory is being built is under state ownership
and has historically, as well as currently, been associated with military use.
The general contractor for the project is UPB nams, while design work was carried out by UPB projekti, part of the UPB Group. Construction supervision is being provided by Firma L4. The value of the construction contract has not been disclosed by the defence sector.
According to information from Firmas.lv, the beneficial owners of UPB nams are Uldis Pīlēns, Māris Mors and Madara More. In 2024, the company recorded a turnover of 49.38 million euros and a profit of 1.04 million euros.
The beneficial owners of Firma L4 are Gunārs Valinks and Jānis Māsēns. In 2024, the company reported a turnover of 7.76 million euros and a profit of 1.34 million euros.
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