The line about 'ramshackle' is off, I think,*

otherwise this is another "We're screwed on military supplies" matter.
For a millennium, black powder was a crucial material for both military and commercial uses. Today, it is a specialty commodity with few commercial applications—mostly for rocket hobbyists—but it’s still used in more than 300 munitions, from cruise missiles, to bullets for M16 rifles, to the vital 155mm shells.

In each case, a small amount of black powder is used to detonate a more powerful explosive packed in the same bullet or missile. A 155mm shell for a howitzer, for example, will use half an ounce of black powder, lodged next to 26 pounds of a more powerful explosive.
Etc.  The military still uses a lot of black powder, so when the Goex facility blew, it was a much bigger problem than having to get imported powder for your muzzleloader and cartridge firearms.

So when Estes bought it, and said they would be producing for their use and for commercial sales, there was great rejoicing.  Lots of people waiting for it, but I wonder how much will be left for sales if the military decides it needs most of it.



*That wall the article mentions 'blowing 100 feet' was a blowout wall; it's intended to do that to vent pressure and reduce damage to the rest of the place.