Gunpowder shortage leads Lexington ammo manufacturer to close, lay off workers
The ammunition manufacturing arm and sister company of a well-known Lexington gun maker will temporarily close down its plant in West Columbia and lay off nearly 80 workers at the end of January.
AAC Ammo, the sister company of Palmetto State Armory, said it did not have a date set for a potential reopening of its plant on Metropolitan Drive in West Columbia in a letter submitted to the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce (DEW) Monday.
The company, which produces weapons ammunition sold on Palmetto State Armory’s website, operates alongside the armory’s production and distribution at the facility, but are separate brands. John Roberts, an attorney for the company, told The State that workers for Palmetto State Armory would not be impacted by the closure.
The company told DEW that the closing was “due to catastrophic supply chain constraints of raw materials necessary for production.” Roberts told The State the closure was a result of a gunpowder shortage.
Palmetto State Armory expanded its operations to the West Columbia manufacturing and distribution center in early 2021 and received a number of tax incentives from Lexington County as a result, The State reported at the time. The company promised to invest $61.7 million and create at least 150 new jobs.
“We’ve seen a substantial growth in sales and a significantly large number of products moving,” both old favorites and new lines the armory is turning out, Julian Wilson, a co-owner of Palmetto State Armory and son of U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, told The State at the time. “These have been some busy engineers.”
The company has around five years from when it purchased the property for the project to meet those requirements, according to the tax incentive agreement with the county. If it didn’t meet those requirements, it would have to ask for an extension from the county.
Under the agreement, the company pays a reduced property tax rate of 6% instead of the normal 10% for industries. Over a 10-year period, the company would be entitled to a tax credit equivalent to 20% of its investment for the first five years and 10% for the second five years.
When asked about how, if at all, the layoffs and gunpowder shortage could impact the company’s plan to reach its requirements to keep the tax incentives, he said the company would “do whatever’s necessary to comply with the law and meet the requirements we need to.”
The gun manufacturer makes and sells a range of weapons from pistols to AR-15s across nearly a dozen retail stores in the Carolinas and Georgia, as well as direct sales online.
