Castelion builds hypersonic missile plant near 450 New Mexico homes

Sandia National Laboratories found an emergency could release toxic gas clouds, while local firefighters plan to let 17 buildings burn.

Defense technology startup Castelion began building a manufacturing complex in Sandoval County, New Mexico, that sits within 1,000 meters of hundreds of suburban homes.¹² The development, designated Project Ranger, occupies roughly 1,000 acres in Rio Rancho Estates on the western edge of Rio Rancho.³¹ Internal planning documents and safety reviews show the industrial site introduces severe chemical and explosive hazards to adjacent neighborhoods.²¹

Castelion was established in November 2022 by three former SpaceX executives: chief executive Bryon Hargis, chief operating officer Sean Pitt, and chief financial officer Andrew Kreitz.¹³ The company grew rapidly during the defense technology investment surge, reaching a private valuation of $13 billion following an earlier $2.8 billion valuation.¹ In roughly 18 months, the company secured more than $500 million in Pentagon contracts, including a $200 million agreement with the Navy to manufacture solid-fuel hypersonic weapons designed to fly faster than five times the speed of sound.¹

The Rio Rancho complex is designed to serve as the company's primary high-rate manufacturing facility for its Blackbeard missile.³¹ Project Ranger broke ground in January on a 405-hectare parcel.¹³ At several boundary points, the complex sits roughly 900 meters from approximately 450 residential properties in Rio Rancho Estates.¹ Residents moved to the semi-rural subdivision for open space and cheap land, often placing mobile homes on small lots without municipal water.

Sally Schultz bought 0.2 hectares in Rio Rancho Estates for $3,500 following a divorce to raise her four children, planting corn, squash, and green chiles.¹ Her parcel now borders the industrial property.¹ "Ya hemos pasado por tantas cosas. Y ahora tenemos que irnos. Lo que más miedo da es la incertidumbre," Schultz said of the plant.¹

A hazard assessment compiled by Sandia National Laboratories evaluated the operational profile of the complex under the New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program.¹ The report determined that the worst-case scenario involves a catastrophic storage fire.¹ Public filings confirm Castelion intends to store up to 250,000 pounds of heat-sensitive ammonium perchlorate oxidizer across covered bunkers and magazines.¹ Outside those bunkers, the facility holds clearance to maintain up to 81,000 pounds of active explosive material inside hazardous integration assembly areas.¹

Sandia calculated that a full detonation of maximum allowable explosive quantities would require a safety buffer equal to nine football fields.¹ An explosion at that magnitude could shatter windows nearly four miles away and carries a 3.2 percent chance of inflicting ear trauma on anyone within 365 meters.¹ Sandia identified a test-stand fire as the most probable hazardous incident.¹ Such a blaze would disperse a corrosive plume containing hydrogen chloride and chlorine gas, compounds that inflict severe chemical burns and pulmonary edema upon inhalation.¹

Municipal records reveal that the Rio Rancho Fire Department adopted a containment strategy that leaves 17 of the 26 planned buildings to burn during a chemical fire.¹ Firefighters are barred from entering high-risk assembly structures due to toxic exposure and blast danger.¹ Communications between municipal administrators and Castelion show the company was still negotiating basic water flow volumes for fire suppression between March and May, months after ground had broken.¹

New Mexico was not Castelion's initial choice for the plant.¹ In August 2023, the startup sought approvals in Churchill County, Nevada, operating under the corporate name Pallas Industrials.¹ When Churchill County officials submitted an eight-page technical analysis demanding detailed fire protection protocols and testing limits, the company abandoned the Nevada plan and shifted to Sandoval County.¹

Local and state political leaders moved quickly to secure the factory. Sandoval County commissioners approved $125 million in industrial revenue bonds, granted a 95 percent property tax reduction, and exempted out-of-state machinery purchases from standard taxation.¹ Republican state senator Jay Block, who previously served as a county commissioner, supported the financing package before local boards.¹

Castelion held its first public informational session on the project in October 2025, after land transfers and tax incentives had advanced through local government bodies.¹ Community members who purchased affordable acreage in the area now face zoning that brings heavy weapons assembly to their fence lines. "Esta tierra es asequible para quienes la necesitan. Los responsables locales nos traicionaron," said neighborhood resident Jason Clifford.¹

What this rests on

33 sentences trace to 3 sources.

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1. 1 E es.wired.com Third-party reporting · es.wired.com Una nueva fábrica de misiles hipersónicos amenaza la tranquilidad de una comunidad en Nuevo México See the source
2. 2 YA Yulia Almazova Document · wired.com · 9 Oct 2026 A New Mexico Community Was a Place to Build a Life. Then a Hypersonic Missile Factory Showed Up See the source
3. 3 C castelion.com Third-party reporting · castelion.com · 3 Apr 2025 About Us - Castelion See the source

Also consulted: 3 pages across 1 site, none cited.