ILION, N.Y. (AP) — Remington Arms has been awarded a nearly $80 million contract from the Pentagon to produce sniper rifles at the company's Mohawk Valley plant, an upstate New York congressman said Friday.
U.S. Rep. Richard Hanna, whose 22nd Congressional District includes the plant in Ilion in Herkimer County, said the contract calls for Remington to make more than 5,000 sniper rifles and millions of rounds over 10 years for the U.S. Special Operations Command.
Hanna, a Republican, called Remington "the premier manufacturer" of sniper rifles for the American military. Under the contract, the company will produce the Remington Modular Sniper Rifle, or MSR, which has a range of up to 1,500 meters, or just under a mile.
The contract announcement came two days after a group of state lawmakers met with Remington officials who told the legislators that the company plans to spend $20 million upgrading its gun manufacturing plant in Ilion.
Local media outlets report that three senators and three Assembly members met with Remington officials on Wednesday to discuss what they could do to ensure the company keeps its plant in Ilion, where the company employs about 1,200 people. Concerns were raised about the company's future in Ilion after the Legislature passed a law banning the sale of military-style rifles, including the Bushmaster product made at the plant.
Since the law was passed in mid-January, other states have shown interest in having Remington relocate the plant.
Remington officials haven't commented on the upgrade plans.
Remington has been a part of Ilion since 1816, when Eliphalet Remington crafted a flintlock rifle on his father's forge. In addition to producing firearms and ammunition for the military and law enforcement, the Madison, N.C.-based company also makes weapons for hunting and shooting sports.