Ukraine Ammunition Supply Threatened by 'TikTok Cat Videos'

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Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on the U.S. economy, housing market, property insurance market, local and national politics. She has previously extensively covered U.S. and European politics. Giulia joined Newsweek in 2022 from CGTN Europe and had previously worked at the European Central Bank. She is a graduate in Broadcast Journalism from Nottingham Trent University and holds a Bachelor's degree in Politics and International Relations from Università degli Studi di Cagliari, Italy. She speaks English, Italian, and a little French and Spanish. You can get in touch with Giulia by emailing: g.carbonaro@newsweek.com.

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One of Europe's largest ammunition manufacturers has said it's unable to expand to meet new quotas and respond to Ukraine's increased demand because a nearby data center is using up all the electricity in the central Norway region to store TikTok videos.

The Norwegian group Nordic Ammunition Company, better known as Nammo, told the U.K. newspaper Financial Times that there's no surplus of energy for its Raufoss plant, where the new factory was planned.

The electricity of the region is being used up by a data center whose bigger client is TikTok. The embattled social-media platform has come under increased scrutiny in the U.S. for its ties with China.

Ammunition factory
Ammunition is seen during live fire training with the AS90, on March 24, 2023 in southwest England. Demand for ammunition has increased in Europe, especially from Ukraine, but one manufacturer says it cannot meet quotas. Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images

"We are concerned because we see our future growth is challenged by the storage of cat videos," Nammo chief executive Morten Brandtzæg told the newspaper.

Local energy provider Elvia confirmed to the Financial Times that the network has no electricity to spare, and that the energy is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Should Nammo require more energy, it will take time to make this available to the ammunition manufacturer.

Nammo was formed in 1998 as a merger of ammunition businesses in Norway, Sweden, and Finland. It is co-owned 50:50 by Norway's government and the Finnish aerospace and defense company Patria.

The company told the FT that demand for ammunition has been growing at an unprecedented pace in Europe, especially in Ukraine. The country at war with Russia is using around 60,000 rounds per day, according to Nammo, and would like to use 65,000 if possible.

Brandtzæg told the newspaper that the European ammunition industry needs to invest 2 billion euros ($2.15 billion) in new factories just to meet Ukraine's demand.

But Nammo's expansion is now blocked by TikTok. The social-media company is building three data centers in 2023—and possibly adding two more—in Hamar, some 15 miles east of Raufoss. Brandtzæg said that he "can't rule out" that it's "not by pure coincidence" that the expansion of a European defense company was being blocked by the Chinese-owned social-media app.

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew was grilled by Democrats and Republicans of the House energy and commerce committee panel last week about the ties between the company and the Chinese government. He said: "Let me state this unequivocally: ByteDance [the parent company which owns TikTok] is not an agent of China or any other country."

Newsweek has emailed Nammo's and TikTok's media teams for comment.

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About the writer

Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on the U.S. economy, housing market, property insurance market, local and national politics. She has previously extensively covered U.S. and European politics. Giulia joined Newsweek in 2022 from CGTN Europe and had previously worked at the European Central Bank. She is a graduate in Broadcast Journalism from Nottingham Trent University and holds a Bachelor's degree in Politics and International Relations from Università degli Studi di Cagliari, Italy. She speaks English, Italian, and a little French and Spanish. You can get in touch with Giulia by emailing: g.carbonaro@newsweek.com.

Writers Page

Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on the U.S. economy, housing market, property ... Read more