Apollo Micro Systems Ltd. Secures Lifetime Arms Manufacturing License, Enabling Entry into Full-Scale Weapon Systems Production

 

Apollo Micro Systems Limited (BSE: 540879, NSE: APOLLO) has been granted a license by the Government of India, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), for the manufacture of ammunition and strategic weapon systems under the Arms Act, 1959.

The license, issued on April 10, 2026, carries lifetime validity and authorizes the Company to manufacture, assemble, integrate, and proof-test a wide range of high-value defence systems across multiple categories.

License Scope

The license covers manufacturing across two key categories of arms of caliber above 12.7mm:

Category I — Guided Weapons, Underwater Systems & Countermeasures:

Missiles (short, medium and long-range)

Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs)

Torpedoes (light and heavy weight variants)

Underwater mines

Safety and arming mechanisms

Chaffs, flares and decoys

Category II — Aerial Munitions & Loitering Systems:

Aerial bombs (general purpose and precision-guided)

Rockets (guided and unguided)

Loitering munitions

Manufacturing and proof-testing will be carried out at the Company’s facilities in Hyderabad, located at Hardware Park Phase-II, Mamidipally, and IDA Mallapur.

Capability Integration

IDL Explosives Limited, a step-down subsidiary of Apollo Micro Systems Limited, brings established expertise in explosives, propellants, pyrotechnics, detonators, and initiating systems. These capabilities are directly aligned with the requirements of the licensed weapon systems.

Key areas of capability include:

Solid propellants for missiles, rockets and torpedoes

Explosive compositions for warheads and aerial systems

Pyrotechnic compositions for countermeasure systems

Precision detonators and initiating systems

Warhead design and production

The integration of these energetics capabilities with Apollo’s strengths in guidance electronics, embedded systems, and sensor integration is expected to support end-to-end development and manufacturing.

Strategic Impact

The grant of this lifetime license marks a significant shift in the Company’s strategic positioning, enabling its transition from a provider of subsystems to an end-to-end manufacturer of complete weapon systems, including missiles, torpedoes, aerial bombs, and loitering munitions.

Mr. B. Karunakar Reddy, Managing Director, Apollo Micro Systems Ltd. further added, “This license is an important step in expanding the Company’s presence in the defence manufacturing sector. Together with the capabilities of IDL Explosives, we now have the building blocks to develop and manufacture a meaningful range of weapon systems for the Indian Armed Forces and for export. We will progress methodically, ensuring that our manufacturing infrastructure, quality systems and regulatory compliances are in place before we scale production.”

Earlier, the company announced that it has successfully completed blast Trials for Limpet Mines. These Limpet Mines are Diver Carried Mines used in Naval Defence. Apollo Micro Systems is the only Indian Company that has successfully developed this product for Indian Navy. This is a remarkable Milestone for the company positioning it to be a provider of complete spectrum of underwater Mines right from Shallow waters, Deep Waters and Limpet Mine Categories building its strengths in underwater Electronic Warfare systems.

Apollo Micro Systems Limited, a 41-years-old pioneer in defence technology, specializes in the design, development, and manufacture of advanced electronic, electro mechanical, and engineering systems. With multi-domain, multidisciplinary capabilities and robust infrastructure, the company is equipped to build cutting-edge defence technologies and produce them at scale for national strategic needs. Building upon capabilities of subsidiary company in explosives, AMS as a group positions itself as a Tier-I Original Equipment Design Cum manufacturer having explosive capabilities.