Patria owns half of Nammo. Illustration picture. JOEL MAISALMI
Tiktok is setting up three new data centers in Norway. According to the local electricity company, they are the primary electricity consumer.
Ammunition manufacturer Nammo, jointly owned by the Norwegian state and Patria, cannot expand its operations. The obstacle to growth is the electricity required by the data centers of the social media service Tiktok. Reported about it Financial times.
Tiktok is setting up three new data centers in Norway this year and possibly two more by 2025. The ammunition manufacturer was told that there is not enough electricity to expand the Raufoss factory in Norway. According to the local electricity company Elvia, the primary user of electricity is the data center.
– We are concerned that the storage of cat videos is an obstacle to our growth, Nammo’s CEO Morten Brandtzæg said.
Nammo is one of Europe’s largest ammunition manufacturers. Tiktok is a social media application owned by the Chinese company Bytedance, which is especially popular with young people.
15 times the demand for ammunition
With the war in Ukraine, the need for ammunition has increased. The European munitions industry would have to invest 2 billion euros in new factories to meet the demand demanded by the war in Ukraine. In addition to this, ammunition is also needed in countries that are not at war.
Nampo’s production of artillery ammunition is currently 15 times higher than normal. According to Brandtzæg, governments should prioritize electricity consumers better. According to him, it is doubtful why the Chinese company is blocking Nammo’s expansion.
– I do not rule out the possibility that this is a pure coincidence, because it concerns a company related to defense.
Tiktok did not comment on the incident. Information security experts in numerous countries have been concerned about the company’s data practices, which the company has tried to improve.