Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics to build their own rocket motors

(Reuters) -Lockheed Martin said on Tuesday it had signed an agreement with peer General Dynamics to build solid rocket motors, which propel missiles, amid surging demand driven by conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Efforts to replenish U.S. inventory are also driving the global demand for missiles and a shortage of rocket motors could pressure production.

Starting in 2025, General Dynamics will start producing solid rocket motors, used to propel missiles, for the Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) at its Camden, Arkansas facility.

Lockheed Martin, which builds GMLRS, is ramping up deliveries from 10,000 in 2024 to 14,000 in 2025.

Much sought-after and relatively inexpensive, rocket motors have been supplied mainly by Northrop and L3Harris Technologies in the past.

However, startup rocket maker Ursa Major has also attracted interest from the Pentagon, which is seeking to widen its supplier base beyond these two dominant companies.

(Reporting by Pratyush Thakur in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Pooja Desai)