Castelion will build a $100 million rocket manufacturing facility in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Castelion is a weapons manufacturing startup with the goal of developing hypersonic missiles quickly and at scale.

The New Mexico facility, dubbed Project Ranger, is expected to create over 1,000 full-time, permanent jobs and generate over $650 million in economic output over the next decade. Project Ranger will produce solid rocket motors, conduct static tests, and assemble components to produce finished rounds. Blackbeard, the company’s first weapon system, has evolved from a blank-sheet design to more than 20 developmental test flights in under 18 months.

The company said local and regional collaboration was essential to New Mexico’s selection, driven by efforts from Sandoval County, the City of Rio Rancho, the Albuquerque Regional Economic Alliance (AREA), Sandoval Economic Alliance (SEA), and state officials.