Castelion Hypersonic Missile Campus Near Rio Rancho Promises 300 Jobs, Raises Concerns

A defense company has broken ground on a 1,000-acre hypersonic missile manufacturing campus a few miles west of Rio Rancho, drawing high-level military officials to the ceremony while sparking a separate community meeting where Sandoval County residents demanded answers about water use, environmental studies, and tribal consultation.

Castelion's Project Ranger, announced formally on January 21, 2026, will produce solid rocket motors, conduct static fire testing, and assemble finished hypersonic rounds at a site in Sandoval County selected over competing locations in Arizona and Texas. Andrew Kreitz, Co-Founder and CFO of Castelion, said the county won out because of its proximity to Sandia and Los Alamos National Labs and what the company described as a supportive local government. Site preparation and grading are already underway, with full-scale construction and hiring planned for later this year.

The project's promise is substantial by any local measure. Castelion projects at least 300 high-paying jobs, many of them in engineering, and estimates the campus will generate more than $650 million in economic output for New Mexico over the next decade. The company says it will invest more than $220 million in private capital overall, with more than $100 million committed to the development phase. To secure the project, Sandoval County, the City of Rio Rancho, and the state assembled an incentives package totaling up to $10 million: $5 million from the state, up to $4 million from the county, and up to $1 million from Rio Rancho.

Sandoval County Manager Wayne Johnson has tied the arrival of Project Ranger to accelerated progress on the Paseo del Volcan extension and compared its long-term economic significance to the role Intel has played in anchoring the region's economy.

The groundbreaking drew considerable federal firepower. New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham attended alongside U.S. Army Portfolio Acquisition Executive Fires Lt. General Frank Lozano and Paul McGinty, Director of NAVAIR's Rapid Capabilities Cell. Castelion has framed the project in terms of national urgency, describing the work as "critical" for defense and arguing that China and Russia currently lead the United States in hypersonic development and production. The company's internal approach, characterized as a "build fast, test often" strategy, is designed to close that gap through high-cadence domestic manufacturing.

Not everyone at the table is persuaded the project has been handled transparently. At a recent community meeting, residents raised pointed questions about the absence of published safety studies, ecological assessments, and meaningful tribal consultation. Water usage drew particular concern from attendees. Castelion says it has conducted studies on safety and environmental impact but has not yet made them public. On the question of tribal engagement, the company says it is waiting to schedule a "formal" meeting with Pueblo governors until after a new chairman of the All Pueblo Council of Governors is selected.

The facility's static fire testing, which involves strapping a rocket motor to a test stand, igniting it, and measuring performance data, has been a focal point of the noise debate. The process generates significant sound by nature, but Kreitz told attendees the tests "will be no louder than a vacuum cleaner for nearby residents and will comply with local noise ordinances, only occurring during business hours." KRQE has also addressed community concerns about the project through a dedicated podcast episode.

Whether Castelion's assurances satisfy residents may depend heavily on what the company's unreleased studies actually show, and on how quickly it moves to engage the Pueblo governors whose land and water interests sit directly in the project's footprint.