Stockholm-based defense startup Swebal is set to build Sweden’s first TNT production facility since the 1990s, following a 3-million-euro ($3.45 million) investment to fast-track construction.
The Nora-based plant targets full 24-hour operations by late 2027, producing over 4,000 metric tonnes (8,818,490 pounds) of TNT yearly. This aims to boost Europe’s annual output of approximately 6,000 tonnes, far from Russia’s 50,000-tonne capacity, according to the company’s estimates.
This initiative is backed by Sweden’s ex-chief of the army, Maj. General Karl Engelbrektson, e-commerce entrepreneur Pär Svärdson, and private equity firm EQT founding member and former CEO Thomas von Koch.
“The investment will help us speed up further towards the final approvals, allowing us to have the shovel in the ground as soon as possible,” Swebal founder Joakim Sjöblom said.
With its funding, Swebal submitted permits and related documents to the Swedish Court of Environment for approval in March. Construction is eyed to begin at the end of 2025.
Once operational, local production is expected to increase by 75 percent.
Reinforcing European Defense
The chemical compound TNT (trinitrotoluene) is a key explosive component in many munitions, including bombs, grenades, and artillery shells.
Europe’s supply predominantly relies on a single large-scale TNT producer, Poland’s Nitro-Chem, while the rest comes from Asia.
This arrangement tends to cause delays, shortages, and other supply chain issues that drive up costs, potentially putting NATO and its partners at risk amid heightened regional tensions.
The upcoming Swedish plant, in addition to Finland’s planned production facility announced in February and a Czech-Greek joint venture to manufacture TNT, intends to fill that gap and shore up European defense readiness.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the US is also developing its first local TNT source since the 1980s in Kentucky.