Three months after an Iranian missile hit the factory of drone maker Aerosol, its parent company, the publicly traded Welorix, said it received about NIS 7.2 million in property tax compensation for the direct damage. The strike hit the company’s plant in the Segula industrial zone of Petah Tikva in March, during Operation "Roar of the Lion," and Welorix said the site suffered severe damage.
Despite the hit, the company restored production by moving operations to an alternate plant. Last month it said manufacturing had resumed there, with the flight teams and engineering department back to full activity. Welorix CEO Roy Bargil told Globes after the attack that the company was staying calm and focused on its plan to buy Aerosol and build up its operations, saying, "Out of bad can come good."
The attack came just a week after Welorix signed a binding agreement to buy 70% of Aerosol from Lehav Invision and Israel Vaserluf, Aerosol’s CEO. The acquisition was completed last month for NIS 25.1 million, with another NIS 9 million to be invested in Aerosol’s equity, bringing the total commitment to NIS 34 million. Aerosol provides aeronautical solutions for defense customers and has four drone models. Welorix aims to compete with Chinese and American drones by controlling the value chain from end to end.
Aerosol reported NIS 15.5 million in revenue last year, down from NIS 20.4 million in 2024, while EBITDA rose 1% to NIS 3.5 million. Welorix, formerly Aquarius Engines, is a battered survivor of the 2020 to 2021 tech listing wave. It went public in late 2020 at a post-money valuation of about NIS 1 billion, briefly peaked at NIS 1.75 billion, and later lost nearly all its value. In recently published 2025 reports, it said it had not generated meaningful revenue, posted a loss of $17 million in the past year and $123 million since inception, and raised doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern.
In December, the company adopted a new strategy centered on defense and security, especially border and homeland security systems, and also disclosed a memorandum of understanding to sell its engine business. Welorix now trades at about NIS 160 million, up more than 70% since the start of the year. Recent moves included a NIS 19.5 million private placement to institutions such as IBI, the appointment of Roy Bargil as CEO, retired Maj. Gen. Roni Numa as chairman, and retired Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovitz as a director.
