Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announces $70 million expansion, jobs at Des Arc munitions plant

DES ARC, Ark. – Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced a new economic development at an Arkansas munitions plant at a news conference on Friday.

Officials joined the governor to announce that White River Energetics, LLC in Des Arc, was adding 90,000 square feet to its existing 14,000-square-foot facility. Sanders said the expansion represents a $70 million investment and is expected to add 100 jobs.

“I’m proud of the 100 new jobs and the $70 million investment we are announcing in a small town in Arkansas that I know will have a big impact,” Sanders said.

White River Energetics manufactures ammunition primers. Sanders said the firm has 125 employees, of whom 73 were hired in the past year.

Company officials said the investment is to meet market demand, as a worldwide shortage of smokeless propellant is affecting global munition availability.

The relationship between the firm and Arkansas came from a meeting at the annual SHOT Show in Las Vegas earlier this year, the governor said. SHOT is a large trade show for the gun and outdoor industries.

The governor touted the state’s low taxes and education with an emphasis on technical education and strong support for the Second Amendment, making Arkansas attractive to firearms-related industries in making the announcement.

Arkansas Economic Development Commission executive director Clint O’Neal echoed Sanders’s statement about the importance of ammunition and firearms manufacturing as an Arkansas industry.

“Congratulations to White River Energetics and to the City of Des Arc on this successful economic development project,“ O’Neal said. “This project hits the sweet spot in Arkansas: the growth of the firearms and ammunition industry led by innovative entrepreneurs, which is resulting in new jobs and investment in a rural community.”

According to the corporate website, White River Energetics is a wholly-owned subsidiary of D&M Holding Company , an ammunition manufacturer headquartered in Tampa, Florida, with a manufacturing site in Cabot.

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