Ama Group revives plans for ammunition factory near Thyborøn

Danish ammunition producer Ama Group is ready to revive plans for a factory near Thyborøn if the Danish Armed Forces place a sufficiently large order, DR reports. The company says production could potentially begin within a year.

“We are absolutely ready,” said Mikael Klint, chief executive of Ama Group, which is headquartered in Holte.

The company previously proposed producing ammunition on a property just south of Thyborøn Harbour, a short distance from the FMC Rønland chemical plant, formerly known as Cheminova. FMC Rønland recently announced that it will close at the end of the year.

The plant is Lemvig Municipality’s largest private workplace, with 350 employees and about 100 more people working in related businesses in the area. The mayor, several ministers and the prime minister have recently pointed to an ammunition factory as one possible replacement.

Klint said the location had several advantages, including skilled workers, a harbour that could potentially be NATO-certified, and proximity to the Army’s operational units, many of which are in Jutland. He also highlighted access to renewable energy from western Jutland’s wind and solar power, as well as nearby power-to-X facilities.

Ama Group says it has developed the world’s first patentable biodegradable ammunition. The cartridges are intended for training use. According to the company, the Danish Armed Forces use 15 million to 20 million shots using loose powder each year.

However, the company cannot yet say how many employees a new factory would need. It first needs a buyer willing to place an order large enough to justify full-scale production.

Ama Group is seeking such a buyer at the Army’s Industry Day at Oksbøl Barracks, where 80 companies and Army specialists are meeting to discuss future combat capabilities.

Defence expert sees several options

Ama Group and ammunition are only one possibility, said security policy commentator Jakob Kaarsbo, a former chief analyst at the Danish Defence Intelligence Service.

Kaarsbo said demand for the weapons and ammunition needed on the battlefield in Ukraine was constantly changing. Suppliers therefore needed to be able to adapt their production quickly, including to advanced weapons such as high-tech drones with compact explosive charges and weapons based on artificial intelligence.

“That is probably the direction production should be considering,” he said.

Kaarsbo said a workforce such as the one at FMC, which is used to handling dangerous chemical substances, could be well suited to this development. He said it was not unrealistic for a new factory to be ready within a year.

He based that assessment on experience from the ammunition factory being built in Elling in northern Jutland, commonly known as Krudten. A political majority decided in 2024 to revive ammunition production there, and the contract was won by Norwegian defence company Nammo. The project has since been delayed, partly because of strict environmental and safety requirements for modern ammunition production.

According to Kaarsbo, the engineering work in Elling has not been the most time-consuming part. Instead, the lengthy process has involved the administrative and regulatory requirements for establishing the factory.

Mayor hopes for more than one factory

Lemvig’s Conservative mayor, Jens Lønberg, believes an ammunition factory could be established at the former Cheminova site, now called Industripark Rønland. He also hopes more than one company will move in.

“We already have 400 to 450 employees at FMC who are safety-trained in the areas that may be needed. I hope we get not just one company, but perhaps clusters of companies that can create synergies,” Lønberg said.

During the past 11 days, he has met three ministers who have all expressed support for the ambitions: Minister for Cities, Rural Affairs and Transport Signe Munk, Minister for Economic Affairs and the Interior Pia Olsen Dyhr, and Finance Minister Peter Hummelgaard.