L3Harris pushes ahead on Arkansas rocket motor factories

Feb 20 (Reuters) - L3Harris Technologies LHX.N said on Thursday it has begun constructing four solid rocket motor production facilities at its Camden site, as demand for missiles accelerates amid escalating geopolitical tensions.

The expansion, part of a $215.6 million agreement under the Pentagon's defense production act program, aims to increase domestic manufacturing capacity through the facilities, which will include propellant processing buildings.

The defense contractor makes rocket motors through its Aerojet Rocketdyne unit, acquired by L3Harris in December 2022.

The unit is a key producer of weapon components as the U.S. seeks to replace aging Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles and build an inventory of tactical missiles.

L3Harris has since increased spending on the unit by 84%, investments that have helped improve facilities and processes after years of underinvestment and late deliveries, Aerojet's former president Ross Niebergall told Reuters last year.

Demand for arms and military equipment has ballooned as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, with militaries around the world aiming to replenish stockpiles, benefiting contractors such as L3Harris.