Norwegian company says TikTok data centre is limiting energy for manufacturing Ukraine ammunition

By some estimates, Ukraine is firing 6,000 to 7,000 artillery shells a day and is facing ammunition shortages after more than a year of war.

European Union leaders have announced a program to reimburse countries offering artillery ammunition to Ukraine from a ¤1bn fund, while spending an additional ¤1bn on increasing ammunitions manufacturing capacity across the bloc.

TikTok is fighting a proposed national ban in the US, where it has already been banned on most government devices.

TikTok said last year that some employees in China could access European user data and admitted that employees had used its own app to spy on journalists in an effort to track down leaks.

However, in an effort to placate European lawmakers, TikTok said it would begin storing European user data locally this year, with migration continuing into 2024. The company said it would reduce the transfer of data outside the region, and reduce employee access to user data internally.

The company announced plans to open new data centres in Ireland and in the Hamar region of Norway.

Elvia, the local energy provider, confirmed to the Financial Times that the electricity network had no spare capacity after allocating it to the data centre on a first-come, first-served basis. Additional capacity would take time to become available.

TikTok has been contacted for comment.

By 2030, the European Commission estimates that data centres will account for 3.2% of electricity demand within the bloc, an 18.5% jump from 2018.