DroneShield Ltd (ASX: DRO) has announced that it will build a new $13 million counter-drone research and development facility in South Australia, marking a significant milestone for the company, which has nearly doubled its employee numbers to 400 over the past year.
The anti-drone technology company said on Tuesday morning that the new facility in SA would complement its existing operations in Sydney and would create about 20 high-skilled engineering jobs in Adelaide.
It comes as the company said it had nearly doubled employee numbers to 400 globally over the past year, with about 300 of those employees being software and hardware engineers, "reinforcing DroneShield's position as a world-leading technology company focused on delivering advanced defence capabilities''.
DroneShield said it also had about 100 roles open at the moment, "reflecting its commitment to delivering on its technology roadmap and supporting customers and allies with speed and scale''.
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Defence state home to new facility
The new South Australian facility would be led by Jeff Wotjuk, who was an engineer specialising in radio frequency technologies and who had experience including more than a decade with major defence contractor Lockheed Martin.
The new South Australia site is expected to be up and running by March 2026, with the $13 million to be spent on operational and capital expenditure over three years.
DroneShield Chief Executive Oleg Vornik said situating the new facility in SA made strategic sense.
South Australia is recognised as a national leader in defence and space industries, with Adelaide home to a highly skilled and experienced workforce. Establishing our first R&D office in Australia outside of our Sydney Headquarters – in Adelaide – is a strategic move that supports DroneShield's mission to deliver world-leading counter-drone and electronic warfare solutions.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas welcomed the new investment.
South Australia is the Defence State, and has been recognised by the Business Council as the best place in the country to do business. We welcome DroneShield making the choice to conduct research and development here in Adelaide, creating 20 highly skilled engineering roles. As a Government, we have a strong focus on growing our research and development ecosystem, which has the capacity to build our economic complexity and our state's prosperity
Production ramping up
DroneShield said its annual production capacity was expected to increase from $500 million to $2.4 billion by the end of 2026, "including setting up European and US manufacturing; as well as R&D expansion in the US''.
DroneShield shares hit a new record high of $6.29 on Monday, valuing the company at $5.5 billion.
The stock has increased more than tenfold over the past year and is up more than 100% in just the past month.
In September, DroneShield announced it had surpassed 4000 systems sold worldwide following the receipt of two contracts worth $7.9 million from the US Department of Defense.
