Page 14 - Australian Defence Magazine November 2021

14 NEWS REVIEW
INDUSTRY UPDATE
NOVEMBER 2021 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
LEFT: Customers for Australian TNT could include General Dynamics, American Ordnance and the US military itself.
US APPROVES AUSTRALIAN TNT FOR MILITARY USE
EWEN LEVICK | MELBOURNE
THE US Department of Defense has cer- tified Australian-made TNT to military specifications, paving the way for Austra- lian TNT to be exported to the US from the Commonwealth-owned and Thales- operated plant in Mulwala, NSW.
In a joint statement released following the 31st Australia-United States Ministe- rial Consultations (AUSMIN 2021), For- eign Minister Marise Payne welcomed the decision.
“Australia also welcomes the recent decision for Australian-made TNT to be certified to US military specifications as an alternate source of supply for the US,” Minister Payne said.
Mulwala is one of only a limited number of facilities worldwide capable of produc- ing TNT. The US imports large quantities of TNT supplies for military purposes.
ADM understands that the certifica- tion process began prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. US defence officials physi- cally assessed the plant in Mulwala, and further trial and assessment work on
Australian TNT samples then continued in the US ahead of final certification. “It means we can engage with US cus- tomers who utilise TNT as part of their manufacturing process to supply the US military,” Dion Habner, Managing Direc- tor of Australian Munitions, Thales Aus-
tralia, said.
Those customers could include General
Dynamics, American Ordnance and the US military itself.
TNT currently produced in Mulwala is mostly used for domestic military and civilian purposes in Australia. Accord- ing to Habner, US certification means that Thales could double production of TNT to meet American demand – al- though increased freight costs remain a challenge.
Until recently Thales Australia sourced toluene (a key ingredient of TNT, or trini- trotoluene) from overseas but has now secured local supply from Viva Energy in Geelong.
“We’re really pushing to secure local supply of those key ingredients,” Habner said. “The next US orders requiring TNT could be released next year, meaning we’d
hope to see the first shipments exported in the back end of next year.
“Defence’s support and engagement with the US Department of Defense has been really beneficial.”
Thales Australia is also using locally- made TNT to establish an Australian do- mestic filling and production capability for the 155mm M795 high-explosive artil- lery projectile. This activity is part of the Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between the US Ar- my’s Development Command Armaments Center and Thales Australia.
“We’re working on the technology transfer to stand up this capability in Aus- tralia,” Habner said. “Having our locally- made TNT certified to American stan- dards is a critical step in this process.”
Thales’ site in Mulwala also produces military-grade rocket propellant, solid fuel rocket motors and boosters, while the company’s plant in Benalla manufactures high explosive artillery rounds.
The company signed a $1.1 billion agreement with the Commonwealth in 2020 to operate the two facilities for the next decade.
THALES AUSTRALIA