Just as US Ballistic Laboratories prepares to start producing 155-milimeter high-explosive artillery shells in Cody, the company now plans to open a second plant in Romania.
CEO John McCue, a Cody native, told Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday there are no definitive dates set for when either plant will start churning out artillery shells.
But with ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Iran, the demand for military munitions is high, and the company might expand to other countries, he said.
“Everybody’s scrambling (for munitions). I think we have shown how quickly we can get things done if governments get out of their own way,” McCue said.
Sites in Cody, Romania
A $25 million deal to establish an ammunition production facility with US Ballistic was announced in September by Romania’s interim defense minister, Radu Miruță, and interim economy minister, Irineu Darău, according to international reports.
Before the announcement, US Ballistic was very much “below the radar” in Romania but is now well-known and generally highly regarded there, McCue said.
US Ballistic will use the Sadu Mechanical Plant site in Bumbesti-Jiu, in the southern part of Romania. Similarly, the company is repurposing the former Cody Laboratories pharmaceuticals building on Road 2AB at the north edge of town.
The site in Romania was already “defense-oriented” and includes 98 buildings, McCue said.
“We’re taking something that was buried in the woods, and we’re unburying it and making it good again,” he added.
US Ballistic announced plans for the Cody site in 2025.
The company has hired about 40 employees in Cody and hopes to start production “very quickly,” McCue said.
In Romania, the company is “committed to hiring 300 employees,” he said.
The Romanian facility is expected to produce 155-millimeter shells and other products, which McCue declined to specify.
US Ballistic also has contracts in place, though McCue declined to identify the customers.
‘A Foothold In Europe’
In the age of cyberattacks and drone strikes, artillery, long hailed as the king of the battlefield, might be regarded as outdated.
That’s not the case, McCue previously explained to Cowboy State Daily. As the war in Ukraine has demonstrated, artillery still plays a vital role in destroying equipment and fortifications and driving back enemy troops.
Artillery is also more cost-effective than high-tech options, he said.
The U.S. Department of Defense has called for an uptick in artillery shell production, setting a goal of 100,000 rounds per month as soon as possible. Production was well below that target in early 2026.
And 155-millimeter shells are the standard artillery round for the U.S. and its NATO allies.
McCue wouldn’t disclose the planned output for either the Cody or Romanian plants.
Romania is a good choice for operations because of its central location, McCue said.
“We just needed a place where we have a foothold in Europe and have a country that was willing to be with us,” he said.
As a small company, US Ballistic can move quicker than larger competitors to set up new operations, he said, and the Romanian government seems to appreciate that.
They worked closely with the ROMARM-affiliated Sadu Mechanical Plant to finalize the deal for the site in Romania, McCue added.
"The system (in Romania) is still like the old Soviet system. It’s a state-controlled private company,” he said.
‘Defense Sector’
Security personnel are a significant portion of US Ballistic’s workforce, McCue said.
That’s a bigger deal in Romania than in Cody.
Romania is close to the war in Ukraine and also nearer to Iran than many Americans might realize, he noted.
So, there’s a greater possibility of operatives trying to sabotage an ammunition plant there, he said.
ROMARM and the government were eager to arrange the deal with US Ballistic because of the benefits they saw, McCue said.
The company is bringing jobs to Romania and also helping to “bolster their defense sector,” he said.
Given the current state of things, “I think everybody’s going to want to bolster their defense sector,” he said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
