ISTANBUL

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Turkish defense firm MKE and chemical company Konsept Piroteknik at the International Defense Industry Fair (IDEF) 2025 regarding the capacity increase of the energetic materials production facility.

The 17th edition of the six-day defense fair IDEF, starting on Tuesday, is being held simultaneously at the Istanbul Fair Center, Atatürk Airport, Wow Hotel, and Atakoy Marina.

The event, organized by KFA Fairs with support from Türkiye's Defense Industries Secretariat (SSB) and the Turkish Armed Forces Foundation, has Anadolu as its global communication partner.

The agreement was signed by MKE General Manager Ilhami Keles and Konsept Piroteknik General Manager Ekrem Topalbekiroglu.

As part of strategic collaborations coordinated by MKE, Konsept Piroteknik, which operates in the field of explosives and energetic materials, has taken a new step toward significantly increasing its production capacity, aiming to increase its production capacity tenfold within one year.

Initially, annual production volume will reach 500,000 kilograms. This capacity increase will accelerate the supply of precision and high-impact explosives needed by the Turkish defense industry.

According to information shared at the signing ceremony, high-performance energetic materials such as RDX, HMX, and C4 have become available for domestic production as a result of studies initiated approximately four years ago.

These materials play a critical role in ballistic missile systems, air defense systems, FPV drones, smart munitions, and various warheads.

With this development, energetic materials, the product of domestic engineering and chemical expertise, will be supplied for use in a wide range of defense products through the production infrastructure within the MKE Rocket and Explosives Factory.

This will enable domestic procurement of specialized components used in critical systems.

Konsept Piroteknik, with its high safety standards and advanced technology-based production capabilities, will achieve a capacity that can meet not only national needs but also regional demands.

'We are increasing our capacity to meet 100% of Türkiye's needs'

General Manager Topalbekiroglu told Anadolu that the agreement regarding the capacity increase signed at IDEF 2025 is a continuation of the cooperation agreement signed with MKE in 2019.

The firm has increased the existing agreement tenfold, he said, adding: "Products we call energetic materials are actively used in the defense industry today.

"We have developed these domestically and nationally, using our own technology, completely independent of foreign sources."

Topalbekiroglu emphasized that the firm has increased capacity to meet 100% of Türkiye's needs, noting: "We will finalize this increase within 12 months and resume production."