Why the Super Pricey Paint?

The Universe was asked if the exorbitant price of the border wall paint (anywhere from 2 to 10x commercial prices, and 1.3 to 3x industrial prices) could be explained. Are there additional purposes to this project OR special additives to this paint, plus additional insights and information.

Data: The U.S.-Mexico border wall, spanning 1,954 miles with ~741 miles existing (2023), targets ~500 miles for black paint in 2025, covering ~214 million sq ft (30-foot-high bollards, four sides and tops, ~6-inch-wide slats, ~4-inch gaps). The 2020 estimate of $500 million–$3 billion, adjusted for ~15.9% inflation to 2025, suggests ~$579.5 million–$3.477 billion ($1.391 million/mile), yielding $135–$271/gallon ($101–$245 paint-only, after ~$68.11–$165.77 million labor), funded by the ~$46.5 billion One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Compared to 2025 commercial paint costs ($25–$125/gallon, $50–$75 for epoxy, $0.50–$3/sq ft with labor), the wall’s cost is 2–10x higher, hinting at profiteering or logistics, not special materials. Industrial pricing is slightly higher than commercial, but even using industrial pricing/data, the border wall project is still coming in at 1.3 to 3x that of typical industrial projects. Questioning the cost is relevant.
Data and figures derived from Washington Post (2020), ProPublica (2020), and 2025 commercial painting cost reports.

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Published August 21, 2025