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Surveying Europe’s Production and Procurement of Small Arms and Light Weapons AmmunitionThe Cases of Italy, France,
and the Russian Federation
Edited by Benjamin King
AWorkingPaperoftheSmallArmsSurvey
10
2 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 3
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PublishedinSwitzerlandbytheSmallArmsSurvey
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PublishedinJuly2010
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About the Small Arms Survey
The SmallArms Survey is an independent research project located at theGraduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva,Switzerland.Establishedin1999,theprojectissupportedbytheSwissFederalDepartmentofForeignAffairs,andbysustainedcontributionsfromtheGov-ernmentsofCanada,Finland,Germany,theNetherlands,Norway,Sweden,and theUnitedKingdom.TheSurvey isalsograteful forpastandcurrentprojectsupportreceivedfromtheGovernmentsofAustralia,Belgium,Den-mark,France,NewZealand,Spain,andtheUnitedStates,aswellasfromdif-ferentUnitedNationsagencies,programmes,andinstitutes. TheobjectivesoftheSmallArmsSurveyare:tobetheprincipalsourceofpublicinformationonallaspectsofsmallarmsandarmedviolence;toserveasaresourcecentreforgovernments,policy-makers,researchers,andactiv-ists;tomonitornationalandinternationalinitiatives(governmentalandnon-governmental)onsmallarms;tosupporteffortstoaddresstheeffectsofsmallarmsproliferationandmisuse;andtoactasaclearinghouseforthesharingofinformationandthedisseminationofbestpractices.TheSurveyalsospon-sorsfield researchand information-gatheringefforts, especially inaffectedstatesandregions.Theprojecthasaninternationalstaffwithexpertiseinse-curitystudies,politicalscience,law,economics,developmentstudies,sociol-ogy,andcriminology,andcollaborateswithanetworkofresearchers,partnerinstitutions, non-governmental organizations, and governments in morethan50countries.
SmallArmsSurveyGraduateInstituteofInternationalandDevelopmentStudies47AvenueBlanc,1202Geneva,Switzerland
p +41229085777f +41227322738e [email protected]
w www.smallarmssurvey.org
4 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 5
Occasional Papers
1 Re-Armament in Sierra Leone: One Year after the Lomé Peace Agreement,by
EricBerman,December2000
2 Removing Small Arms from Society: A Review of Weapons Collection and
Destruction Programmes,bySamiFaltas,GlennMcDonald,andCamilla
Waszink,July2001
3 Legal Controls on Small Arms and Light Weapons in Southeast Asia,by
KatherineKramer(withNonviolenceInternationalSoutheastAsia),
July2001
4 Shining a Light on Small Arms Exports: The Record of State Transparency,by
MariaHaug,MartinLangvandslien,LoraLumpe,andNicMarsh(with
NISAT),January2002
5 Stray Bullets: The Impact of Small Arms Misuse in Central America,byWilliam
Godnick,withRobertMuggahandCamillaWaszink,November2002
6 Politics from the Barrel of a Gun: Small Arms Proliferation and Conflict in the
Republic of Georgia,bySpyrosDemetriou,November2002
7 Making Global Public Policy: The Case of Small Arms and Light Weapons,by
EdwardLauranceandRachelStohl,December2002
8 Small Arms in the Pacific,byPhilipAlpersandConorTwyford,March2003
9 Demand, Stockpiles, and Social Controls: Small Arms in Yemen,byDerekB.
Miller,May2003
10 Beyond the Kalashnikov: Small Arms Production, Exports, and Stockpiles in
the Russian Federation,byMaximPyadushkin,withMariaHaugand
AnnaMatveeva,August2003
11 In the Shadow of a Cease-fire: The Impacts of Small Arms Availability and
Misuse in Sri Lanka,byChrisSmith,October2003
12 Small Arms in Kyrgyzstan: Post-revolutionary Proliferation,byS.Neil
MacFarlaneandStinaTorjesen,March2007,ISBN2-8288-0076-8(first
printedasKyrgyzstan: A Small Arms Anomaly in Central Asia?,byS.Neil
MacFarlaneandStinaTorjesen,February2004)
13 Small Arms and Light Weapons Production in Eastern, Central, and Southeast
Europe,byYuditKiss,October2004,ISBN2-8288-0057-1
14 Securing Haiti’s Transition: Reviewing Human Insecurity and the Prospects for
Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration,byRobertMuggah,
October2005,updated,ISBN2-8288-0066-0
15 Silencing Guns: Local Perspectives on Small Arms and Armed Violence in
Rural South Pacific Islands Communities,editedbyEmileLeBrunand
RobertMuggah,June2005,ISBN2-8288-0064-4
16 Behind a Veil of Secrecy: Military Small Arms and Light Weapons Production
in Western Europe,byReinhildeWeidacher,November2005,ISBN
2-8288-0065-2
17 Tajikistan’s Road to Stability: Reduction in Small Arms Proliferation and
Remaining Challenges,byStinaTorjesen,ChristinaWille,andS.Neil
MacFarlane,November2005,ISBN2-8288-0067-9
18 Demanding Attention: Addressing the Dynamics of Small Arms Demand,by
DavidAtwood,Anne-KathrinGlatz,andRobertMuggah,January2006,
ISBN2-8288-0069-5
19 A Guide to the US Small Arms Market, Industry, and Exports,1998–2004,by
TamarGabelnick,MariaHaug,andLoraLumpe,September2006,ISBN
2-8288-0071-7
20 Small Arms, Armed Violence, and Insecurity in Nigeria: The Niger Delta in
Perspective,byJenniferM.HazenwithJonasHorner,December2007,
ISBN2-8288-0090-3
21 Crisis in Karamoja: Armed Violence and the Failure of Disarmament in Uganda’s
Most Deprived Region,byJamesBevan,June2008,ISBN2-8288-0094-6
22 Blowback: Kenya’s Illicit Ammunition Problem in Turkana North District, by
JamesBevan,June2008,ISBN2-8288-0098-9
23 Gangs of Central America: Causes, Costs, and Interventions, byDennisRodgers,
RobertMuggah,andChrisStevenson, May2009,ISBN978-2-940415-13-7
24 Arms in and around Mauritania: National and Regional Security Implications, by
StéphaniePézardwithAnne-KathrinGlatz,June2010,ISBN978-2-940415-33-5
25 Transparency Counts: Assessing State Reporting on Small Arms Transfers,
2001–08,byJasnaLazarevic,June2010,ISBN978-2-940415-34-2
6 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 7
Special Reports
1 Humanitarianism Under Threat: The Humanitarian Impact of Small Arms and
Light Weapons, byRobertMuggahandEricBerman,commissionedby
theReferenceGrouponSmallArmsoftheUNInter-AgencyStanding
Committee,July2001
2 Small Arms Availability, Trade, and Impacts in the Republic of Congo, by
SpyrosDemetriou,RobertMuggah,andIanBiddle,commissionedby
theInternationalOrganizationforMigrationandtheUNDevelopment
Programme,April2002
3 Kosovo and the Gun: A Baseline Assessment of Small Arms and Light Weapons
in Kosovo, byAnnaKhakeeandNicolasFlorquin,commissionedbythe
UnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme,June2003
4 A Fragile Peace: Guns and Security in Post-conflict Macedonia, bySuzetteR.
Grillot,Wolf-ChristianPaes,HansRisser,andShellyO.Stoneman,
commissionedbyUnitedNationsDevelopmentProgramme,and
co-publishedbytheBonnInternationalCenterforConversion,SEESAC
inBelgrade,andtheSmallArmsSurvey,June2004,ISBN2-8288-0056-3
5 Gun-running in Papua New Guinea: From Arrows to Assault Weapons in the
Southern Highlands,byPhilipAlpers,June2005,ISBN2-8288-0062-8
6 La République Centrafricaine: Une étude de cas sur les armes légères et les
conflits (The Central African Republic: A case study of small arms and con-
flicts),byEricG.Berman,publishedwithfinancialsupportfromUNDP,
July2006,ISBN2-8288-0073-3
7 Small Arms in Burundi: Disarming the Civilian Population in Peacetime (Les
armes légères au Burundi: après la paix, le défi du désarmement civil), by
StéphaniePézardandNicolasFlorquin,co-publishedwithLigueIteka
withsupportfromUNDP–BurundiandOxfam–NOVIB,inEnglishand
French,ISBN2-8288-0080-6
8 Quoi de neuf sur le front congolais? Évaluation de base sur la circulation des
armes légères et de petit calibre en République du Congo (What’s new on the
Congolese front? Fundamental evaluation of the circulation of small arms and
light weapons in the Republic of the Congo), byRobertMuggahandRyan
Nichols,publishedwithUNDP–RepublicofCongo,December2007,
ISBN2-8288-0089-X
9 Small Arms in Rio de Janeiro: The Guns, the Buyback, and the Victims, by
PabloDreyfus,LuisEduardoGuedes,BenLessing,AntônioRangel
Bandeira,MarcelodeSousaNascimento,andPatriciaSilveiraRivero,a
studybytheSmallArmsSurvey,VivaRio,andISER,December2008,
ISBN2-8288-0102-0
10 Firearm-related Violence in Mozambique, ajointpublicationoftheMinistryof
theInteriorofMozambique,theWorldHealthOrganization—Mozambique,
andtheSmallArmsSurvey,June2009,ISBN978-2-940415-14-4
8 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 9
Book Series
Armed and Aimless: Armed Groups, Guns, and Human Security in the ECOWAS
Region, editedbyNicolasFlorquinandEricG.Berman,May2005,ISBN
2-8288-0063-6
Armés mais désœuvrés: groupes armés, armes légères et sécurité humaine dans la
région de la CEDEAO, editedbyNicolasFlorquinandEricG.Berman,
co-publishedwithGRIP,March2006,ISBN2-87291-023-9
Targeting Ammunition: A Primer, editedbyStéphaniePézardandHolger
Anders,co-publishedwithCICS,GRIP,SEESAC,andVivaRio,June2006,
ISBN2-8288-0072-5
No Refuge: The Crisis of Refugee Militarization in Africa, editedbyRobert
Muggah,co-publishedwithBICC,publishedbyZedBooks,July2006,ISBN
1-84277-789-0
Conventional Ammunition in Surplus: A Reference Guide, editedbyJames
Bevan,publishedincooperationwithBICC,FAS,GRIP,andSEESAC,
January2008,ISBN2-8288-0092-X
Ammunition Tracing Kit: Protocols and Procedures for Recording Small-calibre
Ammunition, developedbyJamesBevan,June2008,ISBN2-8288-0097-0
The Central African Republic and Small Arms: A Regional Tinderbox, byEricG.
BermanwithLouisaN.Lombard,December2008,ISBN2-8288-0103-9
Primed and Purposeful: Armed Groups and Human Security Efforts in the
Philippines,by SolimanM.Santos,Jr.andPazVerdadesM.Santos,ajoint
publicationoftheSouth–SouthNetworkforNon-StateArmedGroup
EngagementandtheSmallArmsSurvey, April2010,ISBN978-2-940415-29-8
Table of contents
List of tables, figures, and boxes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
About the authors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Acknowledgements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Abbreviations and acronyms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Introduction by Benjamin King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Production. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Procurement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Exports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Chapter 1: Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition: A Look at
Western Producers and Their Markets by Pierre Gobinet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Classifyingtheproducts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Cartridge-based ammunition..................................................................... 25
Non-cartridge-based, explosive ammunition............................................. 26
FeaturessharedbyWesternammunitionproducers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Available production estimates.................................................................. 27
Mass manufacturing ammunition without licensing production............. 29
Ammunition machinery: marketing savoir-faire and exporting
production potential................................................................................... 31
The NATO standard: a business multiplier............................................... 31
Balancing national ammunition independence and market
competitiveness.......................................................................................... 33
10 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 11
OverviewofWesternammunitionmarkets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Company mergers and acquisitions: the lure and supremacy
of the US defence market............................................................................ 36
Armed conflicts and domestic ammunition markets.................................. 37
Old stock purchases and hand loading....................................................... 39
Ammunition contracts.............................................................................. 41
ThemajorplayersinNorthAmericaandEurope...................................... 44
Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Endnotes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Chapter 2: Italian Procurement, Exports, and Consumption of Small-
and Large-calibre Ammunition and Munitions by Giacomo Persi Paoli. . . . . . . 54
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Background. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Procurement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Introduction to defence procurement......................................................... 56
Methodology and preliminary observations on procurement.................... 57
Data........................................................................................................... 58
Analysis..................................................................................................... 67
Consumption. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Methodology.............................................................................................. 69
Data........................................................................................................... 69
Analysis..................................................................................................... 70
Exports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Methodology.............................................................................................. 76
Analysis of exports, 2005–08..................................................................... 77
Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Endnotes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Chapter 3: An Initial Survey of Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition
Production, Procurement, Allocation, Exports, and Transfers by the French
Law Enforcement and Military Services by Pierre Gobinet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Methodology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Frenchammunition-manufacturingcapacity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
BackgroundfiguresontheFrenchdefenceindustry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Current trends........................................................................................... 90
Dire straits for French ammunition-manufacturing capacity................... 91
Researchfindings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Allocation to law enforcement services...................................................... 94
National gendarmerie................................................................................ 95
National police........................................................................................... 96
Army units................................................................................................ 98
Estimated combined annual purchase figures for 2009............................ 101
Commercialexportsandtransfersofammunition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Endnotes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Chapter 4: Russian Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition
Production, Procurement, and Exports by Maxim Pyadushkin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Methodologyandsources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Productsandproducers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Production,domesticprocurement,andexports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Small arms ammunition production, procurement, and exports............. 113
Light weapons ammunition production and exports............................... 116
Anoverviewofexports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Endnotes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
12 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 13
List of tables, figures, and boxes
Tables
Table 1.1 Standardbasicclassificationofarmsintosmallarmsorlight
weapons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Table 1.2 Distinguishingweaponsbytheirammunitioncalibres. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Table 2.1 Confirmedtransactionsin2005andpossiblefuturepurchases
withanestimatedprocurementdatein2006. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Table 2.2 Confirmedtransactionsin2006andpossiblefuturepurchases
withanestimatedprocurementdatein2007. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Table 2.3 Confirmedtransactionsin2007andpossiblefuturepurchases
withanestimatedprocurementdatein2008. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Table 2.4 Confirmedtransactionsin2008andpossiblefuturepurchases
withanestimatedprocurementdatein2009. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Table 2.5 Confirmedtransactionsin2009andpossiblefuturepurchases
withanestimatedprocurementdatein2010. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Table 2.6 Allocationandconsumptionfortrainingpurposesofammunition
andmunitionsofthelargestbrigadeintheItalianArmy,containing4,500–
5,000soldiers,2005–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Table 2.7 Ammunitionacquisitionandconsumptionofahighlyspecialized
unitoftheItalianArmy,2007–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Table 2.8 Regionalanalysis,invalueandquantity,ofItalianammunition
exports,2005–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Table 2.9 Regionalanalysis,invalueandquantity,ofItalianammunition
exportstoAfrica,2005–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Table 2.10 Regionalanalysis,invalueandquantity,ofItalianammunition
exportstotheAmericas,2005–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Table 2.11 Regionalanalysis,invalueandquantity,ofItalianammunition
exportstoAsia,2005–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Table 2.12 Regionalanalysis,invalueandquantity,ofItalianammunition
exportstoEurope,2005–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Table 3.1 Gendarmerieaverageannualprocurementandallocation
figures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Table 3.2 Nationalpolicepurchases,2004–09. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Table 3.3 Averagearmyprocurement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Table 3.4 Frenchdefenceandsecurityforcesallocation,2009. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Table 4.1 MilitarysmallarmsammunitionproducedbyRussian
manufacturers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Table 4.2 Russiansmallarmsammunitionproductionand
exports,2004–08. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Table 4.3 Russianlightweaponsammunitionproductionand
exports,2006–09. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Figure
Figure 1 Varietiesofnon-cartridge-basedammunition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Boxes
Box 1.1 IntergovernmentalregimetoencouragecompetitionintheEuro-
peandefenceequipmentmarket. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Box 1.2 Ensuringfairandequaltreatmentofsuppliersasakeyprincipleof
theCodeofConductonDefenceProcurement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
14 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 15
About the authors
Benjamin King is a consultant for the SmallArms Survey. Previously, he
workedasatechnicaladviserfortheCarterCenterinLakesstate,Southern
Sudan.Hisprofessionalfocushascentredonconflict-trendanalysis,violence
reductionprogrammes,andweaponspolicy.Hehasextensiveexperiencein
projectmanagementandresearchinSudan,Uganda,andChina.Heholdsa
master’sdegreeinInternationalPolicywithaspecializationinconflictreso-
lution from the Monterey Institute of International Studies in the United
States.
Pierre GobinetisaformerFrenchgendarmerieofficer.Hegraduatedfrom
Saint-Cyr,theFrenchArmyAcademy,in1999andsubsequentlyworkedin
thegendarmerieforeightyears.Heservedinseveralriotcontrolandpublic
orderunits,andspent threeyearsasa liaisonofficer toEUROPOL inThe
Hague, Netherlands. He holds a master’s degree from the University of
Portsmouth,UK,andisnowafull-timeresearcherattheSmallArmsSurvey.
Giacomo Persi Paoli is a consultant for the SmallArms Survey and a re-
search fellow at the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research
(UNIDIR). Previously, he was lead researcher at UNIDIR, conducting the
projectonPost-manufactureMarkingofSmallArmsandLightWeapons,and
aconsultantfortheConventionalArmsBranchoftheUnitedNationsOffice
forDisarmamentAffairsinNewYork.HeisanofficeroftheItalianNavyand
aPh.D.candidateinEconomicTheoryandInstitutionsattheUniversityof
RomeTorVergata.HeholdsanMAinPoliticalSciencefromtheUniversity
ofPisaandanMAinInternationalAffairsandDiplomacyfromtheUniver-
sityofTrieste.
Maxim PyadushkinisaRussiandefenceandaerospacejournalistwritingfor
several Russian and international publications.After his graduation from
theSchoolof InternationalRelationsofMoscow’sMGIMOUniversity in
1995,heworkedinvariouspositionsattheRussianForeignMinistryforsev-
eralyears.In2000–04heworkedasadeputydirectoroftheCentreforAnaly-
sis of Strategies and Technologies, the Moscow-based defence think tank,
whereheranseveralpublicationsaswellasheading theSmallArmsPro-
gramme.HeistheauthoroftheSmallArmsSurveyoccasionalpaper, ‘Be-
yondtheKalashnikov:SmallArmsProduction,Exports,andStockpilesinthe
RussianFederation’,andaregularcontributortoSmallArmsSurveyyearbooks.
16 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 17
Acknowledgements
Onbehalfofalloftheauthors,Iwouldliketoexpressourgratitudetoallof
thosewhoassistedinthispublication.Firstly,weareindebtedtothegovern-
mentagencies,ineachofthecasestudies,thatprovidedvitalassistancetothe
research. In France, the national gendarmerie’s Equipment Procurement
Division,theDirectiondessystèmesd’armes—unitédemanagementopéra-
tionsd’armementterrestresoftheDélégationgénéralepourl’armement,and
thenationalpolice’sBureaudel’armementetdesmatériels techniques are
warmlythankedfortheirtrustandcooperationduringthisproject.Wealso
wishtothankseveralofficialsattheDélégationauxaffairesstratégiquesand
theDirectiongénéraledesdouanes(BureauE2)forgrantingusefultelephone
interviews.InItaly,thepersonnelofboththeParachuteBrigade‘Folgore’and
the9thAssaultRegiment‘Col.Moschin’oftheItalianArmygreatlyassisted
uswiththeiravailabilityandsupportthroughouttheproject,particularlyin
thedatacollectionphase. In theRussianFederation,ourgratitudegoes to
Rosoboronexportforitsresponsetoourinformationrequests.Additionally,
wewouldliketoexpressourappreciationtotheGovernmentofGermanyfor
itscontinuedsupportoftheauthorizedtradechapteroftheSmallArmsSur-
vey’syearbook,the2010editionofwhichincludedthebackgroundpapers
thatcomprisethisvolume.
Manyindividualsalsocontributedtheirtimeandexpertisetoourwork.
PatriceBouveretofObservatoiredesarmements,VadimKozyulinofthePIR
Centre,andNeilCorneyoftheOmegaFoundationprovidedvaluablefeed-
backontheinitialdraftsofthepapers,whileJamesBevan,EricBerman,and
MattSchroederweretherewithguidancealongtheway.AlbertZulkharneev,
MatthiasNowak,andFabioDanieleDonderohelpedfact-checkeachdocu-
ment.And,finally,weareextremelygratefultoAlessandraAllenforhersup-
port indirectingthepublicationprocess,AlexPotter forcopy-editing,and
DonaldStrachanforproofreading.
Benjamin King, May 2010
Abbreviations and acronyms
ATGW anti-tankguidedweaponATK AlliantTechsystemsCHF SwissfrancCoeweb ForeignTradeStatisticsDatabaseDAPN Directiondel’administrationdelapolicenationaleDGA Délégationgénéralepourl’armementDGGN DirectiongénéraledelagendarmerienationaleEADS EuropeanAeronauticDefenceandSpaceCompanyEDA EuropeanDefenceAgencyEUR euroEURENCO EuropeanEnergeticsCorporationGDOTS GeneralDynamicsOrdnanceandTacticalSystemsISTAT ItalianNationalInstituteofStatisticsJorAmmo JordanAmmunitionManufacturingandServicesCompanyMANPADS man-portableairdefencesystem/sNATO NorthAtlanticTreatyOrganizationNGO non-governmentalorganizationOSCE OrganizationforSecurityandCooperationinEuropeR&D researchanddevelopmentRISTA-EW reconnaissanceinformationsurveillancetargetacquisition— electronicwarfareRPG rocket-propelledgrenadeRUB RussianroubleSMS subscribingmemberstateSNPE Sociéténationaledespoudresetd’explosifsUK UnitedKingdomUN UnitedNationsUNROCA UnitedNationsRegisterofConventionalWeaponsUS UnitedStates
USD USdollar
18 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 19
IntroductionBenjamin King
Enumeratingastate’sdemandandsupplychainsforsmallarmsandlight
weaponsammunitionremainsadifficultundertaking.Thisislargelyanout-
comeofmanynations’reluctancetofullydiscloseinformation,togetherwith
pooraccountingpracticesthathidethevalueofthedatainaggregatetotals.
Thisworkingpaperillustratesthesechallengesbydetailingthemostcompre-
hensive picture possible of three countries’ procurement, production, and
exportationofammunitionforsmallarmsandlightweapons.Giventhevari-
etyintransparencyanddisparatemeansofdisclosure,eachresearchertooka
uniqueapproachtowardsfactfinding.Comprehensivedataonprocurement,
production,andexportswasnotuncoveredinanyofthecases,asnoneof
these threecountriescompilesorpublicizessuch information. Instead, the
best information available was gathered through a compilation of sources
fromeachcountry.
Inadditiontocontributingtotheknowledgeonammunitionproduction
andprocurement,anothergoalwastoexaminetransparencyinpracticefor
largeammunition-producingcountries.TheSurveyalreadyevaluatestrans-
parency in exports through the annual SmallArms Survey’s Transparency
Barometer,whichranks44majorsmallarms-exportnations.Intermsofex-
port transparency,thenationsstudiedincludeboththemoderatelytransparent
andoneoftheleasttransparent.ItalyandFrancerank11thand12th,respec-
tively,whiletheRussianFederationisamongthemostopaque,ranking41st
(SmallArmsSurvey,2009,pp.49–50).
Thecasestudiesonlyexamineammunitiondesignedordestinedforstate
securitypurposes.Therefore,alldataappliestopoliceandmilitarypurchases
only.Civilianorillegallytransferredammunitionisonlybrieflyaddressed.
Beforemovingtothecasestudies,theopeningchapterprovidesabroad
overviewofWesternsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionproduction
andtradebyexaminingsomeoftheleadingfactorsthatdrivethesupplyand
demand affecting the industry. These are the dynamics within the global
ammunitionmarketasawholethatinfluencethethreesubsequentcasestudies.
Through case studies of three states—Italy, France, and the Russian
Federation—weassesstheirrespectivepracticesintheproduction;procure-
ment;export;and,whenpossible,consumptionofammunition.Theresulting
datanotonlyprovidesascalefortheindustryasawhole,butalsorevealsthe
realitiesoftransparencyandopaquenessintheammunitionmarket.
Someofthekeyfindingsofthispublicationincludethefollowing:
• Thesellingofindustrialknow-howisacommonpractice,givingmanyna-
tions small arms ammunition production capacity. Sophisticated light
weaponsammunitionproduction,however, is limitedtolargeindustrial
powers.
• ThevariouseditionsoftheEuropeanDefenceAgency’sElectronic Bulletin
Board on Defence Contract Opportunities areagoodsourceofpastandfuture
procurementtransactions,althoughtheydohavesomelimitations.
• AmmunitionallocationandconsumptiondatashowsthatItalyandFrance
bothusethegreatestquantityofammunitionstocksfortrainingpurposes.
• Export statisticsoftenpresentaggregateammunitiondata for importing
country,exportingcountry,andbyweight(kilograms)andmonetaryval-
ue.Oftenthequantityandtypeofammunitionarenotrecorded.
• Ammunitionaccountingisoftengroupedwithotherweapons-relateditemsin
amiscellaneouscategory,resultingininexacttotalsforproductionandexports.
• The Russian Federation has a law preventing the disclosure of procure-
mentinformation,forreasonsofnationalsecurity.
Production
Theproductionofsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionisamajorin-
dustryand,unliketheproductionoftheweaponsthemselves,isnotlimited
toindustrialpowers.Becauseofthestandardizationofcalibresofsmallarms
ammunition,therelativelylowtechnologicalrequirementsneeded,andthe
industrialpracticeofsellingammunition-manufacturingknow-how,muchof
20 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 21
theammunitioncanbeproducedbynationswith little industrialcapacity.
Sophisticated formsofnon-cartridge-based lightweaponsammunitionare
the exception, however, as the advanced technological requirements limit
productiontolargeindustrialpowers.Eachofthethreecountriesexamined
herehasalargesmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionindustry,employ-
inghundredsorthousandsofpeopleandcontributingtensofmillionsofdol-
lars to their economies. The ammunition market is confronting numerous
political and economic realities, however. Confronting decreasing defence
budgetsandadjustingtotradeagreementsandconflictsaresomeofthemul-
tiplefactorscurrentlyaffectingthecasecountries.
Self-relianceinammunitionproductionisoftenviewedasanimportant
aspectofanation’soveralldefenceandsecuritystrategy.Yetresultsfromthis
publicationsuggestthatthisbeliefislessferventlyfelt.TheRussianFedera-
tionappearstobeoneofthefewremainingcountriescapableofproducingall
itsammunitionneeds.Amoretypicalapproachtoammunitionacquisition
includeslargequantitiesofimports,asseeninItalyandFrance.Marketcom-
petitionislargelyresponsibleforthisshift.Competitivepricingonstandard-
ized-calibre ammunition and specialized new technologies have increased
incentivestopurchasefromdiverseproviders.Theseforceshavedrivenout
smallarmsammunitionproductioninFranceentirely,whileItalyrelieson
companiesinneighbouringEuropeancountriestosupplyitwithspecialized
lightweaponsammunition.
Procurement
Procurementinformationcanbefoundthroughanumberofsources,includ-
inggovernmentprocurementwebsites,nationalreports,andthemedia.The
mostusefulandconsistentinformationsourceusedbytheauthorswasthe
variouseditionsoftheItalian Defence Contracts Bulletin,whichfollowspro-
curementtransactions.ThisissimilarincontenttotheElectronic Bulletin Board
on Defence Contract Opportunities of the European Defence Agency (EDA).
Ammunitiontypeandquantitiesaregivenbycountry,withwinningbidprices
providedbythesupplier.Overall,thisisatransparentapproach.TheEDA
Electronic Bulletin Boardis,however,voluntaryandlimitedtoEUcountries.
Additionally, a EUR 1 million barrier for reporting presumably eliminates
manysmallarmsammunitiontransfers,asitwouldtakeordersinthemil-
lionsofroundsforthemajorityofsmallercalibrestoreachthatthreshold.
Bulletinboardsare,however,oflittlevalueintotallingtheprocurements
obtained.Countriessupportingdomesticcompaniesdidnotappeartoreport
internalpurchasesinthecasesstudiesexamined.Italianprocurementtrans-
actions posted on the Italian Ministry of Defence website, for instance,
revealednoordersforammunitionfilledbyItalianproducers,yetconsump-
tioninformationfoundthevastmajorityofsuchammunitioncamefromItal-
ianmanufacturers.TheRussianFederation,bycontrast,doesnotreportpro-
curementinformation.Somecompanies,however,diddisclosepercentages
ofammunitionsalesthatwenttothestateandforexport.
Exports
Despitenotedimprovementsbymanynations,oneoftheprinciplefindings
throughoutthecasestudiesisthelackofspecificityindetailingtheammuni-
tiontrade.Thisisparticularlytruefornationalreportingonexportsofammu-
nition. Two layers in the current trade practice hide important details of
ammunition exports. Firstly, ammunition is compiled as one entity under
currentaccountingpractices.AcategorysuchastheItalianMinistryofDe-
fence’s ‘Bombs, grenades, torpedoes, mines, missiles, cartridges and other
ammunitionandprojectilesandpartsthereof,includingbuckshot,shotand
cartridgewads’combinestheentirerangeofitems,i.e.fromshotgunshellsto
120mmmortarbombsandtorpedoes.Thisrestrictsourabilitytoexamine
stateversuscivilianintendedammunition,anti-personnelversusanti-mate-
rialammunition,orevenwhetherammunitionisdesignedforland-orsea-
basedapplications.Furtherdisguisingthefactsofammunitionexportsisthe
factthatsuchexportsareoftenrecordedinan‘other’category,combinedwith
miscellaneousdefence-relateditemsandparts.TheRussianFederation,forin-
stance,usesthecategory‘other’toencompasslargerpiecesofequipment.This
provideslittlemorethanamaximumrangeoftheammunitionexported.
22 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 23
Thesecondlayerofrestrictionsresearchersoftenfaceisaggregaterecords
ofammunition.Ammunition, likeothercommodities, is reportedoftenby
weightand/ortotalvalue.Typically,thetotalquantityofaparticulartypeof
ammunition is leftout.Disregarding typeandquantityseverely limits the
utilityofthedatabydisguisingtheintendeduseoftheammunition.
Conclusion
ThetimingofthispublicationwiththefirstPreparatoryCommitteemeeting
onapossibleArmsTradeTreatyisnotacoincidence.ThisWorkingPaperis
intendedtocontributetothediscussiononstatereportingpractices,which
willbeatopicfornegotiations.Certainly,itcanbesaidthatagreatnumberof
improvements have been made throughout the course of the past decade.
Further steps can nevertheless be taken to increase transparency without
harmingnationalsecurity.
Bibliography
SmallArmsSurvey.2009.Small Arms Survey 2009: Shadows of War.Cambridge:
CambridgeUniversityPress.
Chapter 1 Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition: A Look at Western Producers and Their MarketsPierre Gobinet
Introduction
Ahostofacademicandspecializedpublicationshavetackledthesmallarms
and lightweapons issue,either fromaguncontrolandhumanitarianper-
spective,orfromamoretechnical,encyclopedicstandpoint.Comparatively
littlemarketresearchexistsontheammunitiontheseweaponsuse,although
asimplisticsayinghasitthatafirearmwithoutammunitionisonlyanexpen-
siveclub.Ifwelookatanexample,lightweapons,forinstance,haveahigh
impact in themediaandonpublicopinion (SmallArmsSurvey,2008,pp.
8–12),mostlybecauseoftheirammunition’shighlethality,whichgrantsthem
aquasi-politicaldimension.Suchweaponsareextremelyreliantonaproper
supplyofammunition,eitherbecausetheyusemodern,high-valueammuni-
tionorbecausetheirrateoffireissuchthatlogisticshavetobeputinplaceto
makesurethereisaconstantsupplyofammunitionforusersinthefield.Itis
safetosay,therefore,thatammunitionavailabilitygovernsthetypeofweap-
onsusedinmostoftheconflictsaroundtheworld.
Ammunition is, first and foremost, a commodity—a consumable good
ratherthanadurablegood.Thisdefinitionimpliescharacteristicsthatsetam-
munitionapartfromitsintendedrecipients,thesmallarmsandlightweap-
onsthataremanufacturedtofireit.Drawingonarangeofsources,suchas
technicalreviews,specializedacademicpapers,interviewswithmilitaryand
lawenforcementpersonnel,andinformalcontactswithmanufacturers,this
chapterseekstopaintageneralpictureoftheEuropeanandNorthAmerican
ammunitionindustry,therebyvoluntarilylimitingthescopeoftheresearch
andfindingstoWesternammunitionproducersandtheirmarkets.Theau-
thorthushopestointroducethereadertoanarrayofmajorWesternsmall
24 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 25
armsandlightweaponsammunitionproducersandtotheirmarketenviron-
ments.Sinceammunitionisthecoreproductoftheindustry,thenextpartof
thischapterstartsbyestablishinganacademicallysoundammunitionclassi-
ficationmethodthatisrequiredtoadequatelyanalyseammunitionmarkets
andproducerscomparatively.Thefollowingparthighlightsasetofcommon,
recurrentfeaturesthatseemtobesharedbymostlargeWesternammunition
manufacturers.ThefinalpartlooksatthemaincharacteristicsofWesternam-
munitionmarketsandendswithabriefrundownofthemajorcartridgemak-
ersinNorthAmericaandEurope.
Classifying the products
The UN’s 1997 Report of the Panel of Governmental Experts on Small Arms
(UNGA,1997)andthe1999Report of the Group of Experts on the Problem of Am-
munition and Explosives(UNGA,1999)includesmallarmsandlightweapons
ammunitionasanintrinsicpartofthesmallarmsandlightweaponscategory
andrecommendsitsspecificstudy.Accordingtothesetwodocuments,porta-
bleweaponscanbasicallybecategorizedaseithersmall armsorlight weapons,
asshowninTable1.1.
Assuch,andnotwithstandingthecontroversialissueoflandmines,thiscate-
gorizationplacesportabilityasthefactordistinguishingbothsmallarmsand
lightweapons.Thisisnotappropriate,however,whenstudyingammunition.
Aweaponmaybeportablebyasinglesoldier,butifitsrateoffireishigh,then
itwillrequireatremendousamountofammunitionlogisticstobeoperation-
alinthefieldandwillthuslosealltheinitialbenefitsofportability.Further-
more,focusingfirstonammunitionmakesobvioussensewhenstudyingthe
arms-manufacturingbusiness,asitwillusuallydeterminetheblueprintsof
smallarmsandlightweaponsmanufacturinginthelongrun.Weaponsare
madeforacertaintypeofammunition,whereasspecificammunitionisrarely
madeforaweapon.AccordingtoSmallArmsSurveyresearch,themostprac-
ticaldistinctiontomakeintermsofammunitionistoseparatecartridge-based
fromnon-cartridge-basedammunition.Thisthenbreaksdownbycalibreand
guidancefeatures.Giventhesheerdiversityofcalibres,effects,ranges,and
origin,however,thischapterdoesnotpretendtobeadetailedtechnicalover-
viewnoranexhaustiveballisticsinventoryofsmallarmsandlightweapons
ammunition(referinsteadtoCourtney-Green,1991;Allsopetal.,1997;Ness
andWilliams,2007).Instead,basedoncollateddatapublishedbytheSmall
ArmsSurvey(PézardandAnders,2006,pp.24–25),thechapterfocuseson
projectilesmostcommonlyusedbyWesterncountries,includingNATOand
formerWarsawPactstandardcartridgecalibres.
Cartridge-based ammunitionCartridgesareself-containedunitsthatsharefourbasiccomponents:
• cartridgecase;
• primer;
• propellant/powder;and
• projectile/bullet.
Agivencalibrecanbeemployedinmanydifferenttypesofweaponsandwill
havevariousdenominationsaccordingtothecountryoforiginandmanufac-
turer.The.50projectile,forinstance,whichwillbereferredtoas‘12.7mm’
whenusingthemetricsystem,iswidelyconsideredasthethresholdbetween
smallarmsandlightweaponscartridge-basedcalibres.
Table 1.1Standard basic classification of arms into small arms or light weapons
Small arms Light weapons
Revolvers & self-loading pistols
Heavy machine guns and anti-materiel rifles (12.7–20 mm)
Rifles & carbines Hand-held, under-barrel & mounted grenade launchers
Assault rifles Portable anti-tank guns
Sub-machine guns Portable anti-aircraft guns
Light machine guns Recoilless rifles
Portable launchers of anti-tank missiles & rocket systems
Portable launchers of anti-aircraft missile systems
Mortars of calibres less than 120 mm
26 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 27
Table 1.2Distinguishing weapons by their ammunition calibres
Weapons using cali-bres under 12.7 mm
Weapons using calibres 12.7–20 mm
Shotguns Anti-materiel rifles: US Barrett M82
Pistols Heavy sniper rifles
Machine pistols Heavy machine guns: US .50 Browning M-series (M2); Russian DShK
Sub-machine guns Medium calibre cannons
Rifles Objective crew-served weapons/objective individual combat weapons
Assault rifles
Light sniper rifles
Light machine guns
General purpose machine guns
Non-military weapons
Non-cartridge-based, explosive ammunitionThemoreexpensiveandtechnologicallysophisticatednon-cartridge-based
ammunitioncanbedividedintothreegroups.
Guided rocket-propelled projectilesfeaturetwo-stage,solid-fuelrocketmotors
withhigh-explosivetwo-stagewarheadsandshapedchargesandcanbedi-
rectedtowardsthetargetafterlaunchwhileinflight.Thetrajectorycanbeal-
teredinflighteitherbytheoperatororbyanautomatedguidancecontrolsys-
tem,andtheoperatorcanmakeadjustmentstocompensateforthetarget’s
movements.Theseprojectilesaredesignedtohitmobiletargetssuchastanks,
lightvehicles,andaircraft.Therearearestrictednumberofproducersbecause
thenumberofcustomersandthequantitiesrequiredarelowerthanforsmall
armsammunition,andthereareconsiderabletechnologicalchallengesinthe
productionprocess.Theseprojectilesarefiredbyman-portableairdefence
systems(MANPADS)andanti-tankguidedweapons(ATGWs)systems.
Unguided rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs)followthetrajectoryassignedby
thefirerandcannotbeadjustedoncefired.Thisisreferredtoas‘direct’or‘line
ofsight’fire.Ammunitionislaunchedfromtherocketlauncher’sunrifledtube,
Figure 1
Varieties of non-cartridge-based ammunition
Source: Pézard and Anders (2006, p. 24)
sotheprojectiledoesnotspin.Finsareoftenaddedtotheprojectilesforstabi-
lization.Theyallfeatureawarheadsectionandapropellantsectionandare
usedagainstlightandarmouredvehicles,bunkers,orbuildings,andalsoas
anti-personnelweapons.
Thefinalcategory,non-rocket-propelled projectiles,canbefurthersubdivided
intothreedistinctammunitiongroups:mortarrounds(indirect-fireweapons),
rifle grenades (fired from hand-held, under-barrel, or automatic grenade
launchers),andrecoillessriflerounds(notunlikeconventionalartilleryshells).
Features shared by Western ammunition producersAvailable production estimatesDespite the lack of existing and officially reliable information, researchers
havetriedtocompileanacceptableestimateoftheglobalannualvolumeof
ammunitionproduction,oftenwithconflictingresults.In2005ForecastInter-
national(2005)roughlyestimatedtheglobalproductionofsmallarmsammu-
nitionproducedformilitaryforcesat13billionrounds.In2007,accordingto
thesamesource,thecombinedoutputsofEuropeanandAsiansmallarms
ammunitionmanufacturersalonewerebelievedtoaveragearound15billion
roundsperyear(ForecastInternational,2008a;2008b).Thislastfiguresheds
Non-cartridge-based ammunition
Guided rocket-propelled projectiles
Unguided rocket-propelled projectiles
Non-rocket-propelled projectiles
MANPADS ATGWs rPGs Mortarsrifle
grenadesrecoilless
rifle rounds
28 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 29
littlelightontheextentofUSproductionfigures,andalsohighlightsthedif-
ficultyofseparatingdefenceandcivilianammunitionproductionstatistics
forpropercomparativeanalysis.Arecurrentfigureplacestheglobalammu-
nitionoutputbetween10and14billion roundsperyear,whichmeansan
averageofalmost33millionroundsmanufacturedeveryday(OxfamInter-
national,2006).Theindustrialmanufactureofsmallarmsandlightweapons
ammunitionformilitary,security,andpoliceforces,aswellasforciviliancus-
tomeruse,suppliesamodern,globalmarketinvolvingatleast76countries,
withauthorized international transfersaveraginganestimatedUSD4.3billion
annually(SmallArmsSurvey,2010,p.7;OxfamInternational,2006).
Fewammunitionproducersprovideadequatefiguresand,asdiscussed
laterinthisstudy,anumberofcompaniesmanufactureandexportproduc-
tionequipmenttoanincreasingnumberofdevelopingcountries,undoubt-
edlymakingthesefiguresanunderestimate.EuropeandtheCommonwealth
ofIndependentStatescontain36percentofsmallarmsandlightweapons
ammunition-producingstates(SmallArmsSurvey,2005,p.14).Asubstantial
proportionofammunitionproducersarealsobasedintheUnitedStates,in-
cluding the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, which stands out as the
world’slargestproducerofmilitaryammunition.
Acommonargumentintheacademiccommunityisthattheglobalmarket
for small arms and light weapons ammunition provides the backdrop for
illicitammunitiontransfers,whichcanpotentiallystemfromthe‘authorized’
realmsofproduction,transfers(throughdiversion,forinstance),andofficial
nationalstocks.Exportdataexistsforonly17percentoftheroundsonthe
market,leavingover80percent(upto10billionrounds)ofglobalsupplies
unaccounted for (Oxfam International, 2006, p. 1). The UK-based charity
Oxfamissuedareport in2006analysingammunitionavailability inBagh-
dad’sblackmarket. It foundthatagreatdealoftheavailableammunition
wasnewandoftenofhighquality,withproductiondatesrangingfrom1999
to2004andoriginatingfromfactoriesinEasternEuropeandtheRussianFed-
eration.According to this report, the ammunition was either smuggled in
acrosstheborderordivertedfromimportedsuppliesoriginallyintendedfor
thenewIraqisecurityforces(OxfamInternational,2006,p.8).Thissuggested
thatatthatstagenewlyimportedammunitionwasbecomingwidespread,as
opposedtoearliertimesintheconflictwhen,allegedly,ammunitionoriginat-
edpredominantlyfromexistingIraqistockpiles.
Mass manufacturing ammunition without licensing productionMostmajoractorsshareanumberoffeaturesintheammunition-manufactur-
ingbusiness.Industrializedmassmanufacturingofammunitionhasbecome
the business of modern, profit-oriented companies and industrial plants
activelycompetingforcustomersworldwide.Theirgoalistorationalizeand
optimizearangeofmachinerytomanufactureemptycartridgecases,bullets,
andprimers,aswellasthepropellantorexplosive.Theproductionprocess
canthereforeincludevariousstagesoflargeandsmallcalibreassembly,and
cartridgecaseandbulletmanufacture.Agivenmanufacturermightpurchase
itsammunitioncasingsfromonecompanyandoutsourceothercomponents
suchaspowder,primers,andthepropellantsfromother,separatecompanies.
Thenitsplantwillmanufacturetheprojectileandassemblethefinishedcar-
tridgeusing largelyautomatedmachinery tomelt leadcores; shapebullet
jackets; load primers and powder; and insert the completed rounds into
racks,stripperclips,andeventuallyintosealedboxes.Allthecomponentsare
thenassembledtogetheronthebasisofoptimizedcost-efficiencyandtight
qualitycontrolstandards.Sub-contractorsmayotherwiseberequiredtopro-
vide fully assembled cartridges, and some manufacturers select their sub-
contractorsandcartridgesupplierspreferablyincountriesthatusetheiram-
munition,inordertopromoteoffsetandindustrialbalance(Berman,2010).
Theproductioncapacityofasingleproductionlineiscalculatedonthe
basisofitsmaximumoutput;foratypicalassemblylinethismayamount,for
instance,to130roundsperminute,withapotentialannualoutputcalculated
tobeintheregionof7–12millionrounds(PézardandAnders,2006,p.51).
However,distinguishingwhatispossiblefromwhatisthenormishazardous
becausecomparativecriteriaareseldomapplicablebetweenvariousplants:
Kenya’sOrdnanceFactoriesCorporationinEldoret,whichinitiallyimported
productionequipmentfromBelgiuminthelate1990s,wasreportedtohave
anestimatedannualoutputof20millionroundsofsmallarmsammunition
(Stohl,1998,p.14).Attheotherendofthespectrum,Israel’smainproducer,
IsraelMilitaryIndustries,isreputedtobecapableofproducing1.25million
30 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 31
cartridgesperday,orapproximately500millionperyear(OxfamInternation-
al,2006,p.3).Thecapacityofaproductionlinecanbeevaluatedintermsofa
maximumamountofroundsproducedpershift(e.g.15,000–20,000),butwill
also depend on the number and duration (e.g. eight hours) of the plant’s
weeklyproductionshifts.Higherdemandwilldictateheightenedlevelsof
activity,butproductionwillfluctuate inorder toadapt to routinemainte-
nanceorcompensateforovercapacity.
Oneofthechallengesnowfacedbythesecompaniesandtheirsubsidiar-
ies ispossibledisruptionintheirsupplychains,sincetheyreceivecompo-
nentsfromcountriesworldwide.Delaysinthedeliveryofsuppliescandis-
ruptforecastsandthewholeproductionchain.Thus,themarketleadershave
developedflexibleproductionlinestoswitchtoanotherproductincaseof
delays and manage multiple-contract ammunition requirements issued by
thepoliceorarmy.Forinstance,althoughroundspecificationsdifferforWest-
ernmilitaryandpoliceunits,roundsareusuallymadefromthesamemetals
andmachinedinthesameproductionlines.
Onedefiningfeatureofthismarketistheacknowledgedabsenceoflicensed
productionagreementsforsmallarmsammunition.Onceanoriginalcalibre
designhasbecomewidespread,mostlyonthebasisofNATOorformerWar-
sawPactstandardizationagreementsandpractices,alargenumberofmanu-
facturersaroundtheglobecansetupproductionfacilitiesandstartmanufac-
turingtheroundsbasedontheoriginaldesignstandardswithoutcontractor
royaltiesbeingpaidtotheoriginalmanufacturer(s).Themostfamousexample
isthe5.56x45mmNATOstandardammunition,originallymanufacturedby
Belgium’sFNHerstal,thedesignsforwhichweremadepublictoallowpro-
ductionbyothermanufacturers.Inspiteofthisstandardization,manycontrac-
tors have willingly oriented their marketing towards high-end, high-price
nichemarketstocompensateforhighfixedcostssuchassalariesandresearch
anddevelopment(R&D).Severalsmallarmsammunitionmanufacturersnow
focus theirproduct rangeexclusivelyonadvancedmilitaryandcommercial
variantsofthe5.56x45/.223Rem,7.62x51/.308Win.,and8.6x70/.338Lapua
Magnum.Theproductioncostforatypicalcartridgeisgenerallydividedas:
1/3cartridge;1/3primedcasepluspropellant;and1/3loading,assembling,
andpackaging.1ForacomplexprojectilesuchasNammo’s12.7mmmultipur-
poseround,mostofthefactorycostscovertheprojectile,whereasitscombined
casing,propellant,andprimeraccountforlessthan50percentoftheround’s
manufacturingexpenses(Berman,2010).
Ammunition machinery: marketing savoir-faire and exporting production potentialAnumberofcompanieshavecapitalizedonthelowtechnologicalentrybar-
rierforsmallarmsammunitionproductionandareexclusivelydedicatedto
theproductionandmarketingofammunitionmachinery.Thismarketliteral-
lyprovidesammunitionproductioncapacitiestoitsclientsandaccountsfor
the widespread establishment of ammunition-manufacturing facilities
aroundtheworld.ThetraditionalmarketleadersinthissectorareGermany’s
FritzWerner/MANFerrostaal,France’sManurhin,andBelgium’sNewLach-
aussée(Anders,2005).AccordingtoaGroupederechercheetd’information
surlapaixetlasécuritéstudy,asurprising90percentoftheworld’sNATO-
compatiblemilitaryammunitionmanufacturingplantswereapparentlyset
upandtailoredbyGerman,French,andBelgiancompanies(Anders,2005).
For instance,Turkeyreportedlysignedacontract in2000fortheestablish-
mentofadomesticproductionplantwithsuppliersfromGermany,France,
andBelgiumandsubsequentlyestablisheditselfasanimportantammunition
exporter(AmnestyInternational,2004,p.34).Othercompanieschoosetoex-
tendtheirbusinessopportunitiesbydevelopingtheirownmachineryexport
potential.Forinstance,Bulgaria’sARSENALJSCompanyKazanlak,ontopof
beingamajorregionalammunitionmanufacturer,alsoboastsanengineering
facilityand‘isinvolvedinthetransferofknow-howtomanufactureweapons
andammunition,installsworkshopsandtestsequipmentin[the]customer’s
country,performsqualitycontrol,trainsitspersonnelandgivesanytechnical
assistance’(ARSENALJSCompany,2009).
The NATO standard: a business multiplierThe world’s most distributed calibres belong to two main family groups,
largelybasedonthegeographicaloriginofmanufactureduringthecoldwar
whentheEasternandWesternblocsimposedcompetingammunitionstand-
ards on their allied and satellite countries. These calibres are now largely
32 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 33
standardized,butwillstillusuallybereferredtoaseither‘NATO’or‘Warsaw
Pact’calibres.
TheNATOfamilyincludesfamouscalibressuchas:
• 5.56x45mmNATO;
• 7.62x51mmNATO;
• 9x19mmParabellumNATOor‘Luger’;
• 12.7x99mmor.50BMGBrowning.
TheWarsawPactcalibresarealsowellknown:
• 5.45x39mmWarsawPact;
• 7.62x39mmWarsawPact;
• 7.62x54mmWarsawPact;
• 9x17mmWarsawPact;
• 7.62x25mmWarsawPact;
• 12.7x107mmor12.7x108mmWarsawPact;
• 14.5x114mmRussianmachinegun.
ToindicatethattheirammunitionisproducedaccordingtoNATOdesignand
safetystandards,Westernmanufacturersengraveacrosswithinacircleon
the cartridge cases. This indicates that the ammunition was loaded in a
NATO-approvedfacilityandmeetstheNATOproductionspecificationsfor
that round (NATO, 2009). Standardized cartridges thus facilitate resupply,
weaponsdesign,andcomparison,andultimatelylowerammunitionmanu-
facturingandstoragecosts.Asatokenofhighqualityforsmallarmsammu-
nition,thesymbolalsobecomesmarketable.
Many emerging countries have arms-manufacturing plants that have
beenproducingeitherindigenousorex-Sovietdesignitems,includingam-
munition,foranumberofyears.However,theirexportpotentialislow,as
mostindustrializedcountries,evenonesthatarenotNATOmembers,have
adoptedNATOstandardsfortheirarmiesandnowdemandNATO-compati-
ble goods and ammunition. Thus, manufacturers who do not standardize
theirammunitionproductionmayultimatelyenduprestrictingtheirbusi-
nessopportunities.CountrieswhodochoosetostartproducingNATOstand-
ardammunitionalsosetupexportpromotionboardstoenticestate-owned
ordnancefactoriesintorestructuring,modernizing,andwideningtheirrange
ofproducts.Suchwasthedriveinitiatedin2006byIndiatoboostitsrapidly
decreasingdefenceexports.Accordingtothecountry’sparliamentarycom-
mittee,failuretomanufactureweaponsuptoNATOstandardshadbadlyhit
ammunitionsales.India’s40government-ownedordnancefactoriesrespon-
siblefor itsmainlyindigenousdefenceproduction,whichuptothatpoint
hadonlysuppliedregionalandneighbouringmarkets,hadtobeadaptedand
modernized(Murphy,2005).
Balancing national ammunition independence and market competitivenessHistorically,ammunitionmanufacturinghasbeenanationalprerogativethat
depended on small-scale, state-owned, and often subsidized production
facilities exclusively oriented to meet the domestic demand of a nation’s
armedservices.Productionwasthustailoredtothelatter’sneedsandwas
neitherprofitablenorprofitoriented.Similarly,newentriesintheammuni-
tion-manufacturing business will nowadays often be state sponsored and
aimed exclusively towards the domestic armed forces market. New and
emerging regional production companies often start out with plants that
remain idle between orders of ammunition from their respective govern-
ments. Mzinga Corporation in Tanzania and Kenya’s Ordnance Factories
CorporationinEldoret,forinstance,weresetuptoproducevarioustypesof
ammunitionalongtheselines(PézardandAnders,2006,pp.49,56–57).
Morerecently,andinordertomaketheenterpriseprofitableinthelong
run and face market competitors, the inevitable trend for all small arms
ammunition producers is to consolidate at the national level. This is most
oftenaccomplishedviaamixofstatesponsorship,progressiveprivatization,
foreigninvestment,acquisitions,andjointventures,withaneyeonpossible
exportpotential.AnexcellentexampleisJordan’srecentlyestablishedJordan
AmmunitionManufacturingandServicesCompany(JorAmmo),whichwas
setupasajointventureamongJordan’sKingAbdullahIIDesignandDevel-
opmentBureau,MecarofBelgium,andtheUS-basedDMVHoldings.The
newplant’sinfrastructure,comprisingamodernballisticslaboratoryinthe
34 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 35
vicinityofAmman,shouldquicklygiveJordanself-sufficiencyinbothR&D
and theproductionof conventionalammunition.According to specialized
media sources, this plant is expected to start fulfilling its first Jordanian
armedforcesUSD43millioncontractbymid-October2009anddeliverthe
firstrounds(5.56mm,7.62mm,and9mm)andmortarshells(60mmand120
mm)in2010.JorAmmowillofcourseseektoextendandeventuallyexportits
productrangetomeetdifferentuserrequirements(Foss,2009).
Governmentswhofailtoinjectthisproperbusinessmixoftenrisklosing
theirnationalsmallarmsmanufacturingcapacityinitsentirety.Forinstance,
whereasinItalyallsmallcalibreammunitionconsumedbytheItalianmili-
taryforcesisnationallyproducedbyItaliancontractors(seeChapter2ofthis
study formore information),Francenow lacksa small armsammunition-
manufacturing apparatus and thus imports everything (France, 2007).
Although the French government has kept an industrial manufacturing
capacityformediumandlargecalibresintheformofNextermunitions,ithas
chosen to purchase and import all of its small calibre ammunition from
abroad(seeChapter3ofthisstudyformoreinformation).
Themonopolyofstatesoverammunitionproductionandprocurement
has waned. The globalization of the ammunition market has undeniably
alteredthepredominanceofstatesinthisbusiness,toapointwheretheynow
actpredominantlyasclientsratherthanproducers.Thisoccursdespitethe
factthatmanygovernmentsretainasizeablenumberofsharesintheircoun-
try’s arms-manufacturing companies. The contractors, on the other hand,
havebecometherealactorsoftheweapons-manufacturingmarket.Compa-
niesnowinvestmoneybymodernizingnationalandstate-ownedproduction
facilities,allowingthemtobothguaranteenationaldemandforammunition
andincreasetheircapabilitytosupplyexportmarkets.
Still, someof the largestcontractors,despite their thrustandnecessary
presence on the international ammunition market, have kept their role as
exclusive providers of their countries’ armed forces’ ammunition require-
ments.Thisallowsclientstoprotecttheirammunitionsupplybaseafterpri-
vatization. It also enables them to take advantage of ceiling prices for a
number of years, while benefitting from ‘surge manufacture’ to support de-
mandingoperationalcircumstancesastheyarise.Forinstance,theUKstruggled
foryearswithitsgeneralmunitionscapabilities.WhenBAESystemsacquired
thenewlyprivatizedRoyalOrdnanceoperationin1987,thelatteremployed
19,000peopleandcomprised13ageingmunitionsplants.Whileforeignman-
ufacturerswereopenly invited to tender forUKammunitionprogrammes
andrequirements,theRoyalOrdnancefactoriesrefusedtobidabroadforfear
ofeventuallybecomingdependentonoverseassuppliers,whocouldcutoff
somesuppliesintimesofcrisis.Today’sRoyalOrdnancecapacitystandsat
threeplantsandbarely1,700employees(Foss,1993;Chuter,2008).In2008,
BAESystemssealeditscontributiontotheUKMinistryofDefencewiththe
MunitionsAcquisitionSupplySolutiondealtosupplythenation’sarmywith
upto80percentofitssmallarms(5.56mmand7.62mm),mortarbombs(81
mm),mediumcalibre,tank(120mm),artillery(105mmand155mm),and
navalgunammunitionoverthenext15years,adealreportedlyworthupto
USD5.6billion(Chuter,2008).EquallyasimportantisBAESystems’contin-
ued commitment to substantially upgrading, modernizing, and increasing
thecapacityoftheBirtley,Glascoed,andRadwayGreen(thelatterbeingthe
UK’sonlylocalsourceofmilitarysmallarmsammunition)RoyalOrdnance
productionfacilitiesoverthenextfiveyears,threesitesthathaveheavilycon-
tributedtotheUK’ssupplyofammunitionforuseinAfghanistanandIraq.
Accordingtospecializedsources,someoftheseimprovements involvethe
purchaseofnewmachinery,suchasforgesandroboticmachiningcells;the
demolitionofoldfacilities;andtheirreplacementwithenergy-efficientplants
(Cowan,2008).TheseinvestmentscontributesignificantlytotheUK’sammu-
nitionindependenceandsupply,butalsodrasticallyincreasethecompany’s
overseassalespotential.
InNorthAmerica,mostammunitionisproducedbygovernment-owned
contractor-operatedmanufacturingplantsthatareownedbytheUSgovern-
mentbutallocatedtoandoperatedbyaprivatecompanyforadefiniteperiod.
Thisallowsbothentitiestolookaftertheirinterests,whileperformingduties
forwhichtheyarebestsuited.Thegovernmentestablishesrequirementsand
retainsitsammunitionsupplybaseforuseincaseofanationalemergency.
Thecontractorshavetocompetefortheinitialdealandthenmanagethefacili-
tiestoimplementammunitionproduction.Themostfamousexampleofthis
partnershipistheAlliantLakeCitySmallCalibreAmmunitionCompany,a
36 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 37
subsidiaryofUS-basedpropulsionsystemsandmunitionsspecialistAlliant
Techsystems(ATK)ArmamentSystems,whichbeganworkingwiththeUS
ArmyandPentagonontheLakeCityPlantin2000.Overtheyearsthefacility
hasbecomethecountry’smainsourceformilitarysmallcalibreammunition
procurementandisreportedtohaveincreaseditsproductionto1.4billion
roundsperyear,includingupgradesto5.56mm,7.62mm,and.50calibres.In
2009theUSArmyawardedATKaUSD481millioncontracttocontinuerun-
ningtheLakeCityPlantuntil2013(Greene,Holt,andWilkinson,2005,p.13;
Osborn,2009a).
Overview of Western ammunition marketsCompany mergers and acquisitions: the lure and supremacy of the US defence marketDataregardingammunitionmanufacturersisconsistentlyaggregatedwith
moregeneraldefenceindustryfigures,makingitdifficultforresearchersto
distinguish conflicting or opposing trends. Furthermore, overall defence
spendingmaynotnecessarilyreflectammunitionexpenditures.Theglobal
ammunitionmanufacturersindustryischaracterizedbyunendingmergers
and consolidations to ensure continued profitability and competitiveness,
thusresultingintheprogressiveemergenceoffewerbutlargertransnational
producers. Available open-source information on the defence industry in
generalreflectsthepredominanceofatightcircleofUSandEuropeanindus-
tryactorsfightingforcorporatesupremacyandstrategicacquisitionstogain
strongfootholdsinnewandpotentiallypromisingdefencemarkets.Tosus-
taintheirmanufacturingmarginsandprofits,ammunitionmakerseitherin-
vestintheirownorganicgrowthwithin-countryacquisitionsorexpandtheir
presenceinnewkeyinternationalmarketsthroughvariousacquisitions.
ArecentJane’s Industry Quarterlyreportontheglobaldefenceindustry’s
mergers and acquisitions for 2008 confirms the US defence market as the
main arena for the acquisition of defence manufacturing assets, attracting
morethanhalfofglobaltransactions(Jane’sInformationGroup,2009).Again,
theammunitionmanufacturers’actualcontributiontotheseacquisitionfig-
uresremainstobethoroughlyquantified.Majorammunitionproducers,spe-
cificallyUKfirmssuchasBAESystemsorChemring,areactiveplayersand
aggressiveUSDepartmentofDefensecontractors,forinstance,asBAESys-
tems’ USD 4.53 billion takeover ofArmor Holdings attests. The European
market, on the other hand, suffers from intra-community export barriers,
whichmayexplainwhyacquisitionsintheEuropeandefencesectorremain
mostlydomestic:66percentofacquisitionfundsinvestedinEuropebyEuro-
peancompaniesremainedwithinnationalbordersin2008(Jane’sInforma-
tionGroup,2009).Europeancross-borderactivityisspearheadedbytheDus-
seldorf-based landsystemsandammunitionmanufacturerRheinmetall. In
thisregard,Rheinmetall’sacquisitionof51percentofSouthAfrica’sDenel
Munitionsin2008isagoodexample.Germanfirmsalsoaccountedfor31per
centofdealsintheEuropeanlandsystemssectorin2008andclearlycontrib-
utetoindustryconsolidation.WhileEuropeandefencecompaniesaremainly
rootedinthecontinent,thistrendmaychange,sinceanincreasingproportion
oftheirrevenuesarederivedfrommarketselsewhere,partlyasaresultofac-
quisitionsactivityintheUSmarket.Aninterestingdevelopmentmentioned
bythereportisthatinvestmentsandacquisitionsfundsnolongerflowevenly
inbothdirectionsacrosstheAtlantic,andthegulfbetweentheflowoffunds
eastandtheflowwestisrapidlywidening.‘ForeverydollarinvestedbyEu-
ropeansinthepurchaseofUSdefenseassetsin2008,USfirmsspentjustover
twocentsintheEU’(Jane’sInformationGroup,2009).
Armed conflicts and domestic ammunition marketsAmmunition procurement patterns ultimately reflect a country’s political,
geopolitical,andmilitaryactivities.Similarly,currenteventssuchaswars,re-
gionalconflicts,politicalelections,orperiodsofeconomicuncertaintywill
inevitablycauseammunitionmanufacturerstoadapttheirproductionand
pricesaccordingly.Thiswillultimatelyreflectonend-userrates.Forinstance,
manyauthoritativefieldreportsin2006documentedtheincreaseintheprice
ofbulletsinwar-tornSomaliatoarecordUSD1.50perround,mainlyattrib-
utedtothelocalwarlordsstockinguponammunitioninanticipationofan
upsurgeinfightingandimminentarmedclashes(OxfamInternational,2006,
p.1;BBC,2006).Conflictsare,ofcourse,knownasmarketmultipliersforthe
38 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 39
ammunitionindustry,andfiguressuchastheserevealjusthowmuchdistrib-
utorsandarmsbrokerscanprofitfromthem.
However,itisjustasinterestingtostudyhowthesefactorsmayaffectthe
marketupstream,inthecountrieswherethisammunitionisoriginallymade
and marketed. Once again, most of the available open-source information
portraysthemarketsituationintheUnitedStates.Forinstance,areportpub-
lishedinJanuary2007expectedtheUSmarketforsmallarmsandammuni-
tionmanufacturingtoreachUSD6.5billionby2012(SpecialistsinBusiness
Information,2007).However,despiteareported10percentincreaseintheUS
smallarmsandammunitionmarketin2007,thereportsummarypredicted
thatcivilianandmilitarycustomerdemandwouldsubsequentlylullin2008
duetothecountry’seconomiccrisisandstabilizedtheatresofoperationsin
IraqandAfghanistan.Thistrendwouldnowneedtobevalidatedwithactu-
alizeddata.Oneimportantissuehighlightedbydistinctsourcesrelatestothe
impactoftheUSmilitary’sheavydeploymentsoftroopsoverseas,morespe-
cificallyinIraqandAfghanistan,whichallegedlyuseupmorethanabillion
roundsayearforbothtrainingneedsandfieldoperations(Thompson,2007).
Accordingly,ammunitionproducers increased theiroutputsignificantly in
thelastthreeyearstomeetthisdemand.ThenationalUSammunitionpro-
ductionfacilitiesinLakeCityweredriventothelimitandarmyprocurement
authoritiespurchasedadditionalammunitionfromtherecreationalindustry
(notablyOlinWinchesterandIsraeliMilitaryIndustries)toprovidelive-fire
trainingandcombatroundstoregulartroops,andcombatservicesupport,
reserve,andNationalGuardunitspreparingfordeploymentinAfghanistan
andIraq(Galloway,2004).
TheUSArmy’sheavydemandforammunitionfollowingthestartoftheIra-
qiandAfghanconflictscoincidedwithpolicedepartmentsnationwideincreas-
ingtheirowntrainingneedsfollowingthe11September2001terroristattacks.
This surge in the nation’s ammunition requirements also occurred at a time
whenthepricesofcommoditymetals,likebrass,copper,andlead,usedtomake
ammunitionweresoaringduetohighinternationaldemandfromvariousin-
dustrialsectors.Consequently,manyUSpoliceandsheriffs’departmentsen-
counteredskyrocketingprices,ammunitionshortages,anddrasticprocurement
anddistributiondelaysfromcommercialmanufacturers.Asaresult,manywere
forcedtoreducetheirpersonnel’smandatoryhandgunandrifleshootingprac-
ticeinordertosaveammunitionforoperationalneeds.Policeprocurementof-
ficersnowhavetoanticipateordersandnegotiatelong-termcontractstohold
pricesdown.Againstabackdropofhighdemand,allthiscurrentlypointstoa
significantshortageofammunitionintheUnitedStatesforpolicedepartments,
specificallythe.223rifleround(Thompson,2007).
TheUSpublic’suncertainperceptionoftheirpersonalsafetyandsecurity
isoneofthemostinfluentialfactorsthatcanleadnewownerstobuyweap-
onsandenticecurrentownerstoaddtotheiralreadyexistingprivategunand
ammunitionarsenal.Inthisregard,thecivilianammunitionmarketfollowed
trendsofitsown,especiallyafterthepresidentialelectionandunfoundedap-
prehensionthatthenewDemocraticPartyadministrationwouldconspireto
implementnewtaxesandstrengthenregulationsonthepurchasingofam-
munition. Specialized gun shops, Internet sites, and recreational shooters’
blogsclearlymentionthe‘Obamaeffect’torelatethewayNorthAmerican
gunownershavebeenmassivelybuyingupbulkammunitionsupplies,spe-
cifically.223,5.56NATO(usedbytheM16riflevariants),and7.62x39mm
ammunition. Consequently, this drained retailer stocks, regardless of their
ratesandof the current (2008–2010) recession (Johnson,2009;Stewartand
Burton,2009).Prices,orders,andretailerbacklogshaveapparentlygoneoff
thechartsforboththeweaponsandtheirrespectiveammunition.According
tovariousretailersandgunshops,civilianretailpriceshavesurged20–150
percent inthepastseveralyears,dependingonthetypeofammunition
(Ullmer,2008). Ironically,media reports ratherhint that theelectionofa
Democratic Party administration may ultimately have strengthened the
firearms and ammunitions industry at a time when all the other sectors
wereplummeting.
Old stock purchases and hand loadingAs in the car market, for instance, much of the worldwide civilian and
militarydemandforammunitionismetbyoldstocks.Inthecaseofmilitary-
gradeammunition,purchasingfromoldstockshasseveraldistinctadvan-
tages.Troopsinanoverseastheatreofoperationscanbeissuedwithammuni-
40 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 41
tion purchased locally, thus saving precious logistical time, as well as
manufacturingandshippingcosts.Indigenousforcescanalsobeprovided
withammunitionpurchasedfromlocalorregionalstockpiles,oftenthestock-
pilesofformerSovietblocstates.
Ontopofthepreviouslymentionedadvantages,manyoftheseforces
stilluseformerWarsawPactweaponryanditscorrespondingammunition,
andthuscannotbeissuedNATOstandardammunitionandsupplies.For
instance,mostAfghanweaponryisSoviet-era-designedandthuscompati-
blewithRussianammunition, rendering shipments from Western coun-
triesuseless.Ironically,in2006,atatimewhenmostUSlawenforcement
agencies were experiencing severe shortages of ammunition, the Bush
administrationreportedlysoughttospendanestimatedUSD400million
topurchasevastamountsofRussianstocksofammunitionfromRosoboro-
nexport to supply theAfghan NationalArmy in the event that the next
DemocraticPartypresidentwoulddecidetopullUStroopsoutofthecoun-
try after the 2008 US presidential election. Sources mentioned ‘a vast
amount of ordnance, including more than 78 million rounds of AK47
ammunition, 100,000 rocket-propelled grenades and 12,000 tank shells’
(Harding,2006).
Furthermore,purchasingfromoldammunitionstockpilescanleadtocon-
troversialqualitycontrol,dubioustraceabilityissues,andprocurementfraud.
Forinstance,theNew York TimesandAgenceFrance-Pressereportedthatbe-
tweenMarchandDecember2007theUSArmyhadplacedordersformore
thanUSD223millionofmunitionswithAEYInc.,ahithertounknowncon-
tractoroperatingoutofMiamiBeach,Florida,andheadedbya22-year-old
president,EfraimDiveroli (Mannion,2008).Accordingto thecontract, this
ammunitionwasintendedtosupplyAfghansecurityforceswithammunition
originatingfromHungarianstockpiles.On-siteinvestigationinAfghanistan
revealedthat,underthecoveroffakecertificates,AEYwasinfactproviding
Afghan forceswith40-year-oldChinese-made7.62 rounds indecomposing
packaging,andoriginatingfromAlbania.Theinvestigationshowedthatthe
contractorhadbeenpurchasingweaponsandmunitionsfortheAfghanisin
Bulgaria,Romania,theCzechRepublic,andSlovakiaformorethanadecade.
AEYwassubsequentlysuspendedfromfuturecontractingwithUSgovernment
agencies,butthisstillraisesthequestionofhowthiscontractorwasvettedby
USauthoritiesinthefirstplace.Furthermediainterestshowed,forinstance,
thatAEYwaslinkedtoanumberofdubiousammunitiontransactionsforthe
AfghangovernmentwiththeSlovakcompaniesZVSHoldingandPetinaIn-
ternational,andthatAEY’stransactionshadbeeninvestigatedinAlbaniaand
Hungary(Nicholson,2008).
Thecivilianammunitionmarketalsobenefitsfromcheaper,oldstockpile
ammunition.Goinga step further,however, avidhunters, sportsmen,and
shootingenthusiastsalikeprefertoassembletheirroundsathomewithap-
propriatetoolsandmaterials.Self-assemblyand‘handloading’forsportand
huntingpurposesbyresizingandrefillingemptycartridgeswithprimer,pro-
pellant, casings, andbullets ismuchcheaper thanbuying fullyassembled
ammunitioninashop.SourcesestimatethatforaboutUSD100,someonecan
buy enough supplies to make 1,000 ‘hand-loaded’ home-made cartridges
(CBCNews,2008).Thereare,however,nousefulofficialstatisticstodeter-
minetheextentofreloadingintheNorthAmericansportshootingcommuni-
ty,andmuchlesssoworldwide.
Ammunition contractsIntheUnitedStatesandWesternEurope,potentialammunitioncontracts,in
theformofpublicinvitationstotender,areusuallydisclosedandadvertised
publiclybylaw,andaretherebyaccessibleonmostgovernmentwebsitesand
inspecializedperiodicals(seeBox1.1).Majorprocurementcontractsusually
involvesubstantialamountsofammunitionbeingproducedanddelivered
overseveralyears,andareusuallyincludedaspartofanoverarchingarms
procurementcontract.Forinstance,acountry’sministryofdefencemightin-
vite20ormorecompaniestobidforarangeofsmallarmsandmortarammu-
nitioncontractscoveringagivenprocurementcycleofuptofiveyears(Foss,
1993;Berman,2010).Requirementswillincludevarioustypesofsmallarms
ammunitionadaptedtothecountry’sstandardassaultrifle(e.g.theFrench
FAMASortheBritishSA80).Contenderswillapplyfordifferentpartsofthe
contractrequirementsandadvertisetheirproductioncapacitiestoadjustto
theclient’sdesignspecifications.Theagencyissuingtheinvitationcanorder
42 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 43
oneortwohundredthousanddollars’worthof‘testlots’withsmallprelimi-
narycontractsinordertoevaluatevarioussetsofsmallarmscalibreammuni-
tionavailableonthemarket.Oncethedefinitivetendersareselected,deliver-
iescanbeexpectedtostartthefollowingmonthorshortlythereafter(Foss,
1993)(seeBox1.2).
Thecostofsuchhugecontractsexplainswhymostofthecontractors’client
baseismadeupofwealthy,establishedstates,defenceministries,andtheirre-
spective procurement agencies. Dealing with newly formed, struggling—or,
worsestill—illegitimategovernmentscanultimatelyjeopardizemulti-year
contractswithunsolvabledebtissues.Forinstance,in2007,underintense
secessionistpressurefromtheLiberationTigersofTamilEelam,theSriLankan
UnitedNationalFrontauthoritiesbrokeamilitaryammunitionsupplyagreement
withChinaNorthIndustriesCorporationthathadbeensignedin1992,andsigned
anewUSD37.6millionammunition(mostlyformortarandcannonshells)pro-
curementdealwiththeChineseconglomeratePolyTechnologiesinstead,leaving
overUSD200millionindebtfromtheoriginal1992agreement(Karniol,2007).
Box 1.1 Intergovernmental regime to encourage competition in the European defence equipment market
The intergovernmental regime was launched on 1 July 2006 with the participation at that
time of 22 of the 24 Member States of the European Defence Agency (today with the
participation of 25 out of 26 Member States—all except Romania) plus Norway.
The voluntary intergovernmental regime is operated on the basis of the Code of
Conduct on Defence Procurement (CoC), approved by Defence Ministers on 21
November 2005 to cover defence equipment purchases where the provisions of Article
346 of the TFEU are applicable. The Electronic Bulletin Board—Government Contracts,
also launched on 1 July 2006, is a key element of the defence procurement regime and
provides an historic opportunity for suppliers across Europe to bid for defence contracts
advertised by subscribing Member States. The CoC is underpinned by a robust reporting
and monitoring system to help ensure the guiding principles of mutual transparency and
mutual accountability among subscribing Member States are being maintained in order to
gain the confidence that the regime is working as intended.
Working alongside the CoC is the Code of Best Practice in the Supply Chain (CoBPSC)
which was approved ... on 15 May 2005[.] The CoBPSC extends the benefits of greater
competition through the supply chain, especially [to] lower tier companies and SMEs
[small and medium-sized enterprises] who may not be able to bid for contracts directly
but could act as sub-contractors. Its supporting electronic tool[,] the Electronic Bulletin
Board—Industry Contracts (IC)[,] was launched on 29 March 2007 in the common
interface for the Defence Contract Opportunities set in the Defence Agency’s website to
enable Prime Contractors and commercial buyers to advertise sub-contract opportunities.
On 20 September 2006, the EDA Steering Board also agreed important new elements
to support the development of a truly European Defence Equipment Market, by enhanc-
ing Security of Supply and Security of Information across national borders. Member States
subscribing to the regime have committed themselves to endeavour to meet requests from
fellow Member States for goods and services during an emergency, crisis or armed
conflict, including from their own stocks if necessary. Agreed also were rules governing
the security of classified and commercially sensitive information relating to defence
procurement.
Source: Quoted in its entirety from EDA (2008)
Box 1.2
Ensuring fair and equal treatment of suppliers as a key principle of the Code of Conduct on Defence Procurement
New defence procurement opportunities offered by subscribing member states are
notified on one single portal that deals with ‘invitations to tender’. Each invitation to
tender briefly describes the requirements, the procedures, the timescales for the competi-
tion and the award criteria, and links to national websites or provides other directions to
where full documentation can be obtained. A standard format announcement is also
posted when a contract is awarded. In the conduct of the competition itself, fair and
equal treatment will be assured in:
• selection criteria. All companies will be evaluated on the basis of transparent and
objective standards, such as possession of security clearance, required know-how and
previous experience;
• specifications and statements of requirements. These will be formulated as far as possible
in terms of function and performance. International standards will, wherever possible, be
included in the technical specifications rather than national ones or detailed and specific
company-linked requirements;
• award criteria. These will be made clear from the outset. The fundamental criteria for the
selection of the contractor will be the most economically advantageous solution for the
particular requirement, taking into account considerations of costs (both acquisition and
life cycle), compliance, quality and security of supply and offsets;
• debriefing. All unsuccessful bidders who so request will be given feed-back after the
contract is awarded.
Source: EDA (2005)
44 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 45
The major players in North America and Europe
Someoftheworld’slargestammunitionproducersarelocatedinNorthAmerica.
ArecurrentheavyweightactorintheUSammunitionmarketistheMinneapolis-
basedpropulsionsystemsandmunitionsspecialistAlliantTechsystems(ATK),
whichmanufacturesgunsinMesa(Arizona),aswellassmallarmsandmedium
calibreammunitioninLakeCity(Missouri)andRadford(Virginia).Assuch,the
government-owned,contractor-operatedLakeCityArmyAmmunitionPlantlo-
catedinIndependence,JacksonCounty,Missouri,istheworld’slargestproducer
ofmilitaryammunitionwithaquasi-monopolyontheUSandinternationalam-
munitionmarket.Currentlycomprisingmorethan400buildingsandover2,550
employees, theplantopened in1941andwassuccessively runbyRemington
ArmsCompanyandOlinCorporation.Since1941itsactivitieswereonlyinter-
ruptedforafive-yearperiodbetweentheendoftheSecondWorldWarandthe
beginningoftheKoreanconflict.ATKnowoperatestheplant,whichachieveda
recordannualoutputof1.3–1.4billionrounds(mostly5.56mm,7.62mm,.50,and
20mmcartridges)in2005,therebyquadruplingits2001productionratetomeet
increaseddemand(ATK,2005).Earlierreportsplacedtheplant’smaximumca-
pacityatfourmillionroundsaday,‘threeeight-hourshiftsaday,sixdaysaweek’
tomeettheincreaseddemandforammunitionsincethe11September2001at-
tacksandtheUSinvolvementinAfghanistanandIraq(Galloway,2004).Produc-
tionof.50roundshasincreasedtwelvefoldsincetheUnitedStatesinvadedIraqin
early2003(Hindo,2008).
ThesuccessivecontractsawardedtoATKusuallycomprisebothammunition
productionandfacilityrefurbishmentormaintenance.Forinstance,inearly2007,
theUSArmySustainmentCommandinRockIsland,IllinoissignedaUSD284
millionsmallcalibreammunitioncontractwithATKandawardedanadditional
USD46millionforplantmodernization(Daly,2007).InMay2008ATKArma-
mentSystemssecuredaseriesofsmallcalibreammunitioncontractswiththe
USArmytotallingUSD252million,withUSD205.8millionofthisamountas-
signedtofinancetheproductionof522millionroundsof5.56mm,7.62mm,
and.50ammunitionfortheUSArmy,tobecompletedattheLakeCityplantby
30September2009(Lindley,2008;McFarlane,2008).InJanuary2009ATKre-
ceivedanadditionalUSD49millioninstallmentfromtheUSArmySustainment
Commandtomodernize,upgrade,andcomputerizetheplant’sproductionfa-
cilities in order to improve efficiency (Associated Press, 2009). On 7August
2008ATK’sArmamentSystemsDivisionreporteda32percentincreaseinsales
forthe lastquarter, toUSD442million,whileprofits jumped53percent, to
USD 44 million. The value ofATK shares doubled in the period 2004–08 to
aroundUSD106pershare(Hindo,2008).Followingaseriesofdomesticandin-
ternational procurement contracts totalling USD 88.5 million in November
2008,thecompanyannouncedasalesincreaseof11percenttoUSD2.2billion
duringthefirstsixmonthsof2008(Wagstaff-Smith,2008),reflectingthehigh
demandformediumcalibreandmilitarysmallarmsammunition.Inearly2009
theUSArmyalsocontractedATKtoproduceUSD87millionworthofnon-
standard7.62mmammunition,.50ammunition,mortars,andsmallrocketsto
beshippedtotheAfghanNationalArmyinthesameyear(Osborn,2009b).De-
spitethefactthatmilitarysalesmakeupmostoftherevenuesofATK’sArma-
mentSystemsDivision,thecompanyisalsoactiveonthecivilianammunition
marketandinvestssubstantialamountsinmarketingtoenticepoliceofficers
andsporthunters.Thisefforttocatertocivilianclientsmayproveusefultobal-
anceaninevitablereductioninthedivision’smilitarysalesifthenumbersofUS
troopsarereducedinIraqandAfghanistan.Accordingtospecializedsources,
ATKproducedmorethanfivebillionroundsforhuntingandpoliceusein2006
(Thompson,2007).Since2000thecompanyhasuseditsstakesintheLakeCity
plant to enter the highly competitive civilian ammunition consumer market
withpremium-graderoundsandbrightlycolouredboxes.
Despitetherisingcostsofrawmaterials,therepercussionsonammuni-
tionprices,andtherecurrentreportsthatthehuntingmarketisdwindling,
ATKstillretailsitsFederalPremiumammunitionforasmuchasUSD70fora
boxof20andmanagestooutsellWinchesterandRemington(Hindo,2008).
The rest of the US military’s small calibre ammunition is reportedly pro-
duced,viavarioussub-contractors,byATK’smainammunitioncompetitor,
GeneralDynamicsOrdnanceandTacticalSystems(GDOTS),basedinFalls
Church,Virginia,adivisionofGeneralDynamicsCorporation.Anumberof
contractshighlight thenational stakesatplay in thefight forammunition
productionsupremacy,andalsopointtothewilloftheUSArmy’sFieldSup-
port Command to keep two separate contractors at hand to diversify its
46 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 47
ammunitionsourcesandnotdependsolelyonATK’sLakeCityammunition
factory.InAugust2005GDOTSwonaUSD1.2billionsmallarmsammuni-
tionarmycontracttoserveasasecondarysource,abletoproduce500million
roundsannually(GeneralDynamics,2005). InAugust2006GDOTSwona
USD188millionUSArmycontractcoveringtheproductionofavarietyof
smallarmsammunitionsuchas5.56mm,7.62mm,and.50rounds,tobecom-
pletedanddeliveredayearlater(GeneralDynamics,2006).In2007GDOTS
wonaUSD44millionUSArmyFieldSupportCommandcontracttosupply
5.56mm,7.62mm,and.50ammunitionfortrainingpurposesandoperations
inAfghanistanandIraq(GeneralDynamics,2007).
Düsseldorf-basedRheinmetallisoneofEurope’slargestsuppliersofland
forcestechnology(Newdick,2008a).Its21-square-mileweaponsandmuni-
tionsproductionplantemploysabout1,100workersbasedinUnterlüss in
north-westernGermany,inthevicinityofthreemajorNATOtrainingareas.
ThegroupreportedmorethanEUR4billion(USD5.4billion)innetsalesfor
2007,andexpanded its internationalmarketrangebypurchasingmajority
sharesinSouthAfrica’sDenelMunitionsin2008.Thecompanyalsoenjoysa
strongpresenceintheUnitedStates,asattestedbytheUSD259millionUS
Marine Corps contract signed in June 2008 to supply 40 mm rounds
(Newdick,2008a).Infact,Rheinmetallplacesparticularmarketemphasison
40mmammunition,withfourmillionroundssoldworldwidein2008.
Norway’sNordicAmmunitionCompany(Nammo),withmorethan1,900
employeesspreadover18productionsitesin7countries,canalsobeconsidered
a major European small arms and light weapons ammunition manufacturer.
Withanactivepresence inNorway (NammoRaufossAS),Sweden (Nammo
SwedenAB),Finland(NammoLapuaOy),Switzerland(MTHSA),Germany,
andtheUnitedStates,Nammoregistereda14percentgrowthrateinrevenues
in2008,increasingitssalestoUSD474.2million(upfromUSD416millionin
2007)(Nammo,2009;O’dwyer,2009).In2008roughlyathirdofNammo’ssales
wereattributedtothedomesticNordicmarket,anotherthirdtootherEuropean
markets,andtheresttotheUnitedStatesandCanada.AUSD94millionFinnish
multi-yearammunitioncontractsignedinearly2009confirmstheimportance
ofregionalsalesforthecompany.However,therecentacquisitionofArizona-
basedTalleyDefenceSystemsalsoshowsthecompany’swillingnesstotackle
theNorthAmericanammunitionandweaponsmarket(O’dwyer,2009).Moreo-
ver,Nammohasfoundanichetorideoutthe2008–10economiccrisisandgain
new customers in the process: following the signature of the Convention on
Cluster Munitions on 3 December 2008 in Oslo, the company signed cluster
weapon demilitarization contracts with Norway, Germany, and the NATO
MaintenanceandSupplyAgencyandnowdedicatesoneofitsfivecoreoperat-
ingdivisionstothetask.Thismayprovetobeaninterestingperspectiveforam-
munitionmanufacturerswishingtodiversifytheirserviceportfolio.
Switzerland’s RUAGAmmotec represents a third important actor in the
Western European ammunition manufacturing industry. Headquartered in
Bern,withproductionfacilitiesinGermany,Sweden,andSwitzerland,RUAG
hasthreedivisions:AviationandSpace,DefenceandSecurity,andAmmuni-
tionandProducts.Withaworkforceof6,050employees,theRUAGgroupre-
cordedsalesofCHF1.41billion(USD1.22billion)in2007(Newdick,2008b).In
December2008thecompany’sacquisitionactivitywasboostedbythetakeover
oftheHungariancompanyMFS2000,asupplierofsmallcalibreammunition.
TheRussianFederationtraditionallyboastsmajorammunitionproduc-
tionplants.TheBarnaulMachine-ToolPlantis,forinstance,oneofthelead-
inghistoricalproducersofindustrialgoodsandammunitioninthecountry.
The company website states that its main activity is the manufacturing of
sportingandhuntingcartridgesforriflesandshotgunsandclaimstobeone
ofthelargestsuppliersofcartridgesintheRussianFederation,withagrow-
ingexportmarketintheUnitedStates,Europe,andAsia(BarnaulMachine-
ToolPlant,2000).TheTulaCartridgeWorksisequallyfamousandhasbeen
manufacturingalltypesofammunitionforover100years.Theplantisthe
originalproduceroftheWOLFammunitionbrand(Cushman,2007b),which
hasbeenavailableintheUnitedStatesforyears.
Conclusion
Acquiringdataonsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionisajustifiable
goalinthelongrun,butmayturnouttobeproblematicandunrealisticifthe
small arms and light weapons-manufacturing lobby is not first addressed
48 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 49
and studied academically using a corporate, business-minded approach.
Studying thearms industry ingeneral is impossiblewithout reliable, con-
structiverelationshipsbeingdevelopedbetweenresearchersandindustryac-
tors,outsideofthetraditionalandcriticalapproachhabituallytakenbythe
media and advocacy communities. This chapter provides no more than a
snapshotoftheWesternammunitionindustrywithitsmajorproducers,cost
issues,andmarketactors.Inresearchingandwritingthechapter,theauthor
deliberatelyusedadiversityofsourcestocorroboratetheviewsofacademic
scholars,mediareporters,andindustryandmarketactorsalike.
Thefirstsectionclarifiedspecificclassificationissuesthatneedtobead-
dressedpriortoundertakinganycomparativeresearchintoammunitionpro-
ductionandmarkets.Given the sheerdiversityof calibres, effects, ranges,
guidancefeatures,andorigins,ammunitionshouldnotbestudiedusingthe
traditional small arms/light weapons dichotomy based on portability, but
rather using the cartridge-based/non-cartridge-based distinction. The sec-
ondsectionrevealedanumberofcommonfeaturessharedbymostWestern
ammunitionproducers,whichcouldprovidebenchmarkstoinitiatefurther
research.Accurate production figures are still extremely difficult to obtain
from governments and manufacturers alike, and ammunition data often
comes down to little more than estimation and conjecture. In the United
StatesandWesternEurope,themodern,industrializedmassmanufacturing
of ammunition is now done by profit-oriented companies and industrial
plantsactivelycompetingforcustomersworldwide.Theselargemanufacturers
produceNATO-compatibleammunition,andsomehavediversifiedtheirpro-
ductionportfoliobymarketingandsellingammunition-producingmachinery.
Finally, theymaintain tightbondswith their respectivegovernments’pro-
curementagenciestoupholdawin–winsituationfromwhichbothparties
evidentlybenefit.ThefinalsectionsketchedtheWesternammunitionmarket
andhighlightedthelureoftheUSmarketfordefenceindustryactorsgener-
ally,andforammunitionmanufacturersspecifically,althoughtheirweightin
theoverallcontextisdifficulttoquantify.Thissectionalsomentionstheinflu-
enceofcurrenteventsandworldwideconflictsonammunitionprocurement,
andexplainswhysubsequentcostissuesmaydevelop,therebylendingcredit
tothepurchaseanduseofoldexistingammunitionstocks.Thesectionended
bybrieflyoutliningtheblueprintsandstakesofmostlarge-scale,multi-year
ammunitioncontracts,andbynamingthemajorWesternmanufacturerswho
competeforthem.
ThisshortstudyhasdeliberatelyfocusedontheWesternammunitionin-
dustry.Lengthrestrictions,obviouslanguageconstraints,andaglaringlackof
authoritativesourcesandcontactsexplaintheabsenceofanyreferencetothe
Asianammunitionindustry.Asimilarchaptercouldprobablybesolelydedi-
catedtoAsianmanufacturersandtheirimpactontheworldwideammunition
procurementbusiness.TheAsianammunitionmarketwouldsurelydeserve
substantialacademicattention,althoughreliablespecializeddatasourceson
thesubjectaredifficulttofindwithoutproperindustrycontacts.Anotherarea
ofmarketresearchthatlacksproperacademiccoverageisprimers:thereare
fewerproducersofprimersthanofcartridgecasesandbullets.Assuch,they
couldprobablybecomeapossiblebottleneckforproductionandtransfercon-
trolinthenearfuture.Inthisregard,adetailedstudyofprimerproductionand
marketdistributionwouldundoubtedlybeworthwhile.
Endnotes
1.Emailreceivedfromrepresentativeofammunitionmanufacturer,23April2010.
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54 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 55
Chapter 2 Italian Procurement, Exports, and Consumption of Small- and Large-calibre Ammunition and MunitionsGiacomo Persi Paoli
Introduction
ThisstudyexploresItalianprocurement,exports,andconsumptionofsmall-
andlarge-calibreammunition.Itbeginsbyprovidingbackgroundinforma-
tionontheItaliandefencebudgetandmilitaryexpenditureinordertosetthe
general frameworkwithinwhich theanalysisofammunitionprocurement
andconsumptionismade.Informationregardingtheprocurementofammu-
nitioncamethroughananalysisofalltheDefence Contracts Bulletinspublished
since2005bytheItalianGeneralSecretariatofDefenceandtheNationalArma-
mentDirectorate.Thisanalysisrevealsthatthemajorityoflargecalibream-
munitionisreceivedthroughsingle-source,non-competitivecontractsdueto
thenatureofindustrialpatents.Austria,France,andGermanydominatedIt-
aly’slargecalibreammunitionsupply.Consumptionwasassessedthrough
thebreakdownofammunitionallocatedfortrainingpurposesbythemajor
Italianlightinfantrybrigadeandaspecialforceunit.Inadditiontoscaling
thequantitiesofammunitionusedannuallybytheItalianmilitary,thisanaly-
sisalsofilledinsomegapsinourunderstandingoftheprocurementofsmall
calibreammunition,whichislargelydomesticallyproduced,withafewex-
ceptionsofspecializedammunitionimportedfromFinlandandSwitzerland.
ItalianexportsareexploredthroughananalysisoftheForeignTradeStatistics
Database (Coeweb) of the Italian National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT).
Exportdatahaslimitedvalueasitispresentedinanaggregateform,which
concealsthevarietyofammunitionsenttoeachnation.However,thedata
does identify the main recipients of Italian ammunition, which for the
period 2005–March 2009 was topped by Europe, followed by Americas,
Asia,Africa,andOceania.
Background
The analysis of small- and large-calibre ammunition acquisition and con-
sumption patterns and trends needs to be contextualized in the broader
trendsoftheItaliandefencebudget,whichhasbeenheavilyaffectedbycuts
inpublic(includingmilitary)expenditureinrecentyears.
Firstly,tounderstandhowbudgetcutshaveaffectedthesetrends,itisim-
portanttounderstandwheretheresourcesfortheacquisitionofammunition
comefrom.Intheframeworkofpublicspending,thedefencebudgetisdi-
vided into function-specific budgets, i.e. defence function, public security
function,externalfunction,andinterimpensions.Thedefencefunctionbudget,
whichprovidesfundsfordevelopingandaccomplishingarmy,navy,andair
forceinstitutionalduties,includesthreemainsectors:personnelbudget,op-
eratingbudget,andinvestmentbudget.Theoperatingbudgetprovidesthe
resourcesrequiredtoensuretheefficiencyandeffectivenessofmilitaryac-
tivities,andthusincludestheresourcesneededfortheacquisitionofammu-
nition(Italy.MoD,2009,pp.125–28).From2002to2008theoperatingbudget
droppedsignificantly(about65percent)fromEUR1,150million(USD1,233
million)in2002toEUR406million(USD550million)in2008(Italy.MoD,
2009,p.131).
Whiletheoperatingbudgethasdroppedduringtheperiodofthisstudy,
militarycostshaverisen.Inparticular,theendofcompulsorymilitaryservice
in2005resultedinthetransformationofthearmedforcesintoafullyprofes-
sional force.This transitiondramatically increasedpersonnel costs,which,
duetothedefencebudgetceiling,resultedinareductionofoperatingandin-
vestmentexpenditures.Inaddition,moreandmorefrequentlythefinancial
resourcesusedtocovercostsformissionsabroadaredrawnfromthearmed
forces’ordinarybudgets,whichareintendedtocovertheirfunctioning,train-
ing,andmaintenancecosts(Italy.MoD,2009, pp.125–38).
56 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 57
Limitingtheresourcesavailableforoperations,training,andlogisticshas
hadconsequencesinvariousdomains,affectingthescopeofboththeacquisi-
tionandconsumptionofammunition.Theseconsequencesincluded:
• the restriction of pre-deployment preparation and training only to the
unitsearmarkedfordeploymentabroadwithinaparticularyear;
• thecancellationofalmostallexercisestakingplaceabroad(withnegative
effectsonjointandcombinedintegrationofarmyunitswiththoseofpart-
nernations);
• thecancellationofmanynationalfieldtrainingactivities,whichresultedin
limitationsontheoperationalcapabilitiesofheadquartersandunits;and
• asignificantreduction in theacquisitionofmaterielandspareparts, in-
cludingammunition(Italy.MoD,2009,pp.134–37).
Thecombinedimpactof theseconsequenceshasresultedinanoverallde-
creaseinconsumptionandprocurement,asillustratedbythedatasetspre-
sentedinthisstudy.
ProcurementIntroduction to defence procurementItaly isaparticipatingmemberstateof theEuropeanDefenceAgency(EDA),
whichhasidentifiedprogresstowardsthecreationofaninternationallycompeti-
tiveEuropeandefenceequipmentmarketasakeymeanstostrengthentheEuro-
peandefenceindustry.Consequently,participatingmemberstatesestablisheda
voluntary,non-bindingintergovernmentalregimeaimedatencouragingcompe-
titionindefenceprocurement,onareciprocalbasis,amongthosesubscribingto
theregime(seeChapter1,Box1.1forfurtherdetailsonthisregime).
According to the regime, subscribing member states (SMSs) are called
upon to open all defence procurement opportunities valued at more than
EUR1million(withtheexceptionoftheprocurementofresearchandtech-
nology,collaborativeprocurements,andtheprocurementofnuclearweap-
onsandnuclearpropulsionsystems;chemical,bacteriological,andradiologi-
calgoodsandservices;andcryptographicequipment).1
Thekeyprinciplesonwhichtheabovedescribedmechanismisbasedare
thefollowing(EDA,2005):
• ‘A voluntary, non-binding approach.Nolegalcommitmentisinvolvedor
implied.’SMSsareallowedtocanceltheirparticipationatanytimeand,‘in
allcases,thefinalauthorityforcontractawardremainswithSMSnational
authorities’.
• ‘Fair and equal treatment of suppliers.’To‘maximizeopportunitiesforall
suppliers’itisnecessarytoguaranteemaximum‘transparencyandequal-
ityofinformation’(seeChapter1,Box1.2forfurtherdetails).
• ‘Mutual transparency and accountability.EachSMSwillwishregularlyto
reviewcomprehensivedatawhichdemonstrateshowtheregimeisimpact-
ingdefenceprocurementpracticesandoutcomes.’TheEDA,throughits
monitoringandreportingmechanisms,seekstoachievemutualtranspar-
encyandaccountability.
• ‘Mutual support. The privilege of improved opportunity’ for a nation’s
defencemanufacturerstoexpandintoanother’sdefencemarket‘impliesa
reciprocal obligation’ among SMSs. Therefore, ‘consistent with national
legislationandinternationalobligations’,SMSgovernmentsarecalledon
‘toassistandexpediteeachothers’contracteddefencerequirements,par-
ticularlyinurgentoperationalcircumstances’.
• ‘Mutual benefit....theexpansionofopportunitiesforsmall-andmedium-
sizedcompaniesfromacrossEuropetoselltoacontinental-widemarket’
representsamajorbenefitforallSMSs.Inaddition,because‘[i]ndefence
procurement,thecustomersforsuchcompaniesmaybeaprimecontractor
ratherthantheend-user’,itisfundamentaltoensurethat‘faircompetition
andthebenefitsoftheregimearedrivendownthesupply-chain’,includ-
ingpossiblesub-contractorsselected‘onafairandequitablebasis’.
Methodology and preliminary observations on procurementDespite Italy’s statusasamemberof theEDA, theEDA Electronic Bulletin
Board on Defence Contract Opportunities wasnotusedinthisstudy.Onereason
wasthatitdidnotcomeintoeffectuntil2006.Additionally,sincethebulle-
tin’sestablishment,Italyhasnotpostedabidforsmallarmsorlightweapons
58 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 59
ammunition,anddoesnotappeartohaveuseditconsistently.Thestudyin-
steadusedaseparate,reliablesourceofsmall-andlarge-calibreammunition
procurement patterns, the Italian Defence Contracts Bulletins for the period
2005–09 (Italy,2005–09).ThisbulletinisissuedmonthlybytheItalianGeneral
SecretariatofDefenceandtheNationalArmamentDirectorate,incoopera-
tionwiththeArmedForcesGeneralStaff,theCarabinieri,andGuardiadiFi-
nanzaheadquarters.ThebulletinismeantforallEuropeancompanieswork-
inginthedefencetechnologysectorandpromotescompetitionthroughthe
widerparticipationofcompetitivetenders.Althoughcompetitivecontracts
seemtobethenormforsmallcalibreammunitionprocurement(e.g.seethe
7.62mmroundslistedasapossiblefuturepurchasein2005,asshowninTable
2.1),competitionforlargecalibreammunitionprocurementappearslimited.
Thisisprimarilyduetothefactthatthemajorityoflargecalibreammunition
usedbytheItalianarmedforcesissubjecttoindustrialpatentsduetoitshigh
levelofsophistication.Forthisreason,themajorityofprocurementcontracts
aresinglesourceandarecarriedoutthroughdirectnegotiationswithcompa-
niesinpossessionoftherelevantindustrialpatents.
Minornationalordersmightnotbeincludedinthebulletin,sincelisting
ordersvaluedatlessthanEUR 1millionremainsatthediscretionofeachna-
tion.Thescopeoftheprocurementthatfallsbelowthisthresholdisunknown.
Somespecializedunits,forinstance,areallowedtoengageinnegotiationsfor
theacquisitionofammunition(andmaterialingeneral)independently,with-
outnecessarilyhavingtogothroughthecentralauthority.2Forthisreason,
informationontheseprocurementcontractsisnotincludedinthefollowing
analysis.Nevertheless,thebulletinprovidessufficientinformationtoidentify
procurementtrends,especiallythoserelatedtolightweaponsammunition.
DataIn2005ItalyinvestedaboutEUR17million(USD21million)intheacquisi-
tionoflightweaponammunition,43percentofwhichwasspentinGermany
fortheacquisitionofPanzerfaustweaponsystems,asingle-useanti-tankgre-
nadelauncher(Italy,March2005,p.6),28percentdomesticallyfor25mm
rounds(Italy,February2005,pp.8,9),15percentinAustriafor60mmmortar
bombs(Italy,August–September2005,p.3),and14percentinSouthKorea
for120mmcartridges(Italy,February2005,p.9)(seeTable2.1).
Useful information regarding short-term demand for small- and large-
calibre ammunition by the Italian armed forces can be obtained from the
nationalorderslistedas‘possiblefuturepurchase’.Thislistin2005(withan
estimatedprocurementdatein2006)includedsmallcalibreammunitiontobe
acquiredthroughcompetitivebids (Italy,May2005,p.4)and largecalibre
ammunition to be procured through a single source contract. Of roughly
120,00040mmgrenades,56percentarelistedasapossiblefuturepurchase
intendedtobeprocuredfromaGermancompany,withtheremaining44per
centprocuredfromanAustriancompany(Italy,October2005,pp.2–3).All
5,000ofthe60mmmortarbombsweretobesuppliedbyanAustriancompa-
ny(Italy,July2005,p.2)(seeTable2.1).
Despitethehighquantityofsmall-andlarge-calibreammunitionlistedin
2005 as possible future purchases, no contracts were listed as awarded in
2006.Apossibleexplanationcouldbefoundinthemajorbudgetcutthatfol-
lowedtheprofessionalizationoftheItalianarmedforces.Althoughsomeof
the2005entrieswerepostponedto2007,theoverallquantitieslistedaspossi-
blefuturepurchasessufferedsignificantdrops,withGermanyandAustria
identifiedasthesolesuppliersof58,45040mmgrenades(Italy,October2006,
pp.2–3)and8,45060mmbombs(Italy,July2006,p.4),respectively.Competi-
tive bids for small calibre ammunition were also included (Italy, October
2006,p.3)(seeTable2.2).
In2007onlyonecontractwaslistedasawarded(Italy,April2007,p.2),go-
ingtoanAustriancompanyforaEUR2million(USD3million)supplyof
about5,88060mmbombs(seeTable2.3).
Regarding possible future purchases listed in 2007 (Italy, August–
September2007,pp.1–4;November2007,pp.1–2),58,00025mmcartridges
wererequestedfromRheinmetallinGermany,39,00040mmgrenadeswere
dividedbetweenGermany(78percent)andItaly(22percent),9,20060mm
mortarbombswereplannedtobeacquiredfromanAustriancompany,and
8,000120mmmunitionswereequallydividedbetweenFranceandGermany
(seeTable2.3)
60 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 61
Tabl
e 2.
1C
on
firm
ed t
ran
sact
ion
s in
200
5 an
d p
oss
ible
fu
ture
pu
rch
ases
wit
h a
n e
stim
ated
pro
cure
men
t d
ate
in 2
006
Year
Cal
ibre
Mod
el/T
ype
Qua
ntit
yTo
tal c
ost
(EU
r)
Type
of
cont
ract
Aw
arde
d to
Cou
ntry
2005
Con
firm
ed tr
ansa
ctio
ns
25 m
mC
artr
idge
s/A
PFSD
S-T
WK
PM
B 0
9024
,000
2,83
2,00
0Si
ngle
sou
rce
Sim
mel
Dife
saIta
ly
25 m
mC
artr
idge
s/H
EI-T
WK
PM
B 0
5017
,970
1,87
7,68
5.30
Sing
le s
ourc
eSi
mm
el D
ifesa
Italy
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D3,
260
2,49
9,95
8.20
Sing
le s
ourc
eH
irte
nber
ger
Def
ence
Sys
tem
sA
ustr
ia
60 m
mB
ombs
/WP
smok
e 84
LD
2,90
0
60 m
mB
ombs
/pra
ctic
e 84
LD
8,49
0
120
mm
Car
trid
ges/
TP-T
2,50
02,
320,
000
Com
petit
ive
Poon
gsan
Cor
p.So
uth
Kore
a
Panz
erfa
ust3
(PZ
F3-T
) wea
pon
syst
em
with
tand
em w
arhe
ad2,
210
7,35
7,50
0Si
ngle
sou
rce
Dyn
amit
Nob
elG
erm
any
List
ed a
s ‘po
ssib
le fu
ture
pur
chas
es’ f
or 2
006
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O70
0,00
0—
Com
petit
ive
——
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O tr
acer
93,6
00—
Com
petit
ive
——
12 m
mC
artr
idge
s/PI
T M
20 (a
rmou
r pie
rcin
g,
ince
ndia
ry, a
nd tr
acer
)20
0,00
0—
Com
petit
ive
——
40 m
mG
rena
des/
DP9
252
,200
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Arg
esA
ustr
ia
40 m
mG
rena
des/
self-
dest
ruct
ion
900
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE
PFF-
T D
M11
117
,120
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Die
hlG
erm
any
2005
40 m
mG
rena
des/
soun
d fla
sh2,
700
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
NIC
O F
euer
wer
k G
mbH
Ger
man
y
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
impa
ct s
igna
ture
4,00
0—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
IR1,
500
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
53
MK
281
40,7
00—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
illum
inat
ing
1,85
0—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
whi
te p
hosp
horu
s50
0—
60 m
mB
ombs
/MK
2 (il
lum
inat
ing
bom
bs)
5,00
0—
Sing
le s
ourc
eH
irte
nber
ger
Def
ence
Sys
tem
sA
ustr
ia
Panz
erfa
ust3
(PZ
F3-T
) wea
pon
syst
em
with
tand
em w
arhe
ad7,
100
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Dyn
amit
Nob
elG
erm
any
Sour
ce: I
taly
(Jan
uary
–Dec
embe
r 20
05)
62 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 63
Tabl
e 2.
2C
on
firm
ed t
ran
sact
ion
s in
200
6 an
d p
oss
ible
fu
ture
pu
rch
ases
wit
h a
n e
stim
ated
pro
cure
men
t d
ate
in 2
007
Year
Cal
ibre
Mod
el/T
ype
Qua
ntit
yTo
tal c
ost
(EU
r)
Type
of c
ontr
act
Aw
arde
d to
Cou
ntry
2006
Con
firm
ed t
rans
acti
ons
——
——
——
—
List
ed a
s ‘p
ossi
ble
futu
re p
urch
ases
’ for
200
7
.338
Car
trid
ges
55,0
00—
Com
petit
ive
——
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O64
6,00
0—
Com
petit
ive
——
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE
DM
1241
,300
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Rhe
inm
etal
lG
erm
any
40 m
mG
rena
des/
soun
d fla
sh1,
700
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
NIC
O F
euer
wer
k G
mbH
Ger
man
y
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
impa
ct
sign
atur
e3,
000
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
IR1,
000
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
53
MK
281
5,70
0—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
illum
inat
ing
5,75
0—
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D5,
250
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Hir
tenb
erge
r Def
ence
Sy
stem
sA
ustr
ia
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)2,
000
—
60 m
mB
ombs
/WP
smok
e1,
200
—
Sour
ce: I
taly
(Jan
uary
–Dec
embe
r, 20
06)
Tabl
e 2.
3C
on
firm
ed t
ran
sact
ion
s in
200
7 an
d p
oss
ible
fu
ture
pu
rch
ases
wit
h a
n e
stim
ated
pro
cure
men
t d
ate
in 2
008
Year
Cal
ibre
Mod
el/T
ype
Qua
ntit
yTo
tal c
ost
(EU
r)
Type
of c
ontr
act
Aw
arde
d to
Cou
ntry
2007
Con
firm
ed t
rans
acti
ons
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D3,
880
2,08
2,85
4.20
Sing
le s
ourc
eH
irte
nber
ger
Def
ence
Sys
tem
sG
mbH
& C
o. K
G
Aus
tria
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)2,
000
List
ed a
s ‘p
ossi
ble
futu
re p
urch
ases
’ for
200
8
25 m
mC
artri
dges
/APF
SDS-
T W
K PM
B 09
024
,000
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Rhe
inm
etal
lG
erm
any
25 m
mC
artr
idge
s/M
P-T
SD M
K2
(Mul
tipur
pose
)34
,000
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Rhe
inm
etal
lG
erm
any
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
illum
inat
ing
2,50
0—
Sing
le s
ourc
eR
hein
met
all
Ger
man
y
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
46
DP9
27,
500
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
40 x
53
MK
281
3,70
0—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
soun
d fla
sh1,
700
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
DM
118A
24,
000
—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
M40
/SIM
AD
-T7,
500
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
SIM
AD
SpA
Italy
40 m
mG
rena
des/
M40
/SIM
AD
-CS
1,00
0—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE
PFF-
T D
M11
111
,200
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Die
hlG
erm
any
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D5,
600
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Hir
tenb
erge
r D
efen
ce S
yste
ms
Aus
tria
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)2,
400
—
60 m
mB
ombs
/WP
smok
e 84
LD
1,20
0—
120
mm
Bom
bs/P
R14
(HE)
4,00
0—
Sing
le s
ourc
eTD
A A
rmem
ents
SA
SFr
ance
120
mm
Car
trid
ges/
DM
18A
44,
000
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Rhe
inm
etal
lG
erm
any
Sour
ce: I
taly
(Jan
uary
–Dec
embe
r 20
07)
64 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 65
Tabl
e 2.
4C
on
firm
ed t
ran
sact
ion
s in
200
8 an
d p
oss
ible
fu
ture
pu
rch
ases
wit
h a
n e
stim
ated
pro
cure
men
t d
ate
in 2
009
Year
Cal
ibre
Mod
el/T
ype
Qua
ntit
yTo
tal c
ost
(EU
r)
Type
of c
ontr
act
Aw
arde
d to
Cou
ntry
2008
Con
firm
ed t
rans
acti
ons
40 m
mG
rena
des/
M40
/SIM
AD
-T7,
150
174,
708.
56Si
ngle
sou
rce
SIM
AD
SpA
Italy
40 m
mG
rena
des/
M40
/SIM
AD
-CS
1,00
0
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D6,
000
2,91
5,76
0Si
ngle
sou
rce
Hir
tenb
erge
r D
efen
ce
Syst
ems
Aus
tria
60 m
mB
ombs
/WP
smok
e 84
LD
2,40
0
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)1,
400
120
mm
Bom
bs/P
R14
(HE)
4,00
03,
344,
950
Sing
le s
ourc
eTD
A A
rme-
men
ts S
AS
Fran
ce
List
ed a
s ‘p
ossi
ble
futu
re p
urch
ases
’ for
200
9
25 m
mC
artr
idge
s/A
PFSD
S-T
WK
PM
B 0
9038
,000
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Rhe
inm
etal
lG
erm
any
25 m
mC
artr
idge
s/M
P-T
SD M
K2
(mul
tipur
pose
)35
,300
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
RWM
Sch
wei
z A
G
Switz
erla
nd
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE
PFF-
T D
M11
129
,040
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Die
hlG
erm
any
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE/
DP
30,0
00—
Sing
le s
ourc
eR
hein
met
all
Ger
man
y
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE/
frag
4,40
0—
40 m
mG
rena
des/
illum
inat
ing
5,00
0—
Gre
nade
s/fla
sh b
ang
opv
NIK
O20
0—
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D6,
500
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Hir
tenb
erge
r D
efen
ce
Syst
ems
Aus
tria
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)2,
000
—
2008
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)2,
000
—
60 m
mB
ombs
/WP
smok
e 84
LD
4,50
0—
60 m
mB
ombs
/pra
ctic
e 84
LD
5,30
0—
120
mm
Bom
bs/P
R14
(HE)
4,00
0—
Sing
le s
ourc
eTD
A A
rme-
men
ts S
AS
Fran
ce
120
mm
Bom
bs/il
lum
inat
ing
1,00
0—
120
mm
Bom
bs/P
R14
-PLP
N2,
000
—
Panz
erfa
ust3
(PZ
F3-T
) wea
pon
syst
em
with
tand
em w
arhe
ad5,
100
—Si
ngle
sou
rce
Dyn
amit
Nob
elG
erm
any
Firi
ng d
evic
es1,
000
—
PZF3
sub
-cal
ibre
dev
ices
, 18
mm
, with
fir
ing
unit
150
—
18 m
m18
x 8
6 tr
acer
8,00
0—
Ligh
t ant
i-ta
nk w
eapo
n sy
stem
LA
W
M72
A5
60—
Sing
le s
ourc
eN
amm
o R
aufo
ssN
orw
ay
M
72A
5 A
WA
5, 2
1 m
m, s
ub-c
alib
re
trai
ning
wea
pons
5—
21 m
mM
72 L
AW
A5,
trai
ning
rock
ets
200
—
Sour
ce: I
taly
(Jan
uary
–Sep
tem
ber
2008
)
66 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 67
In2008atotalofaboutEUR6.5million(USD9million)wasinvestedin
theacquisitionoflargecalibreammunition.Inparticular,52percentwentto
Francefortheacquisitionof120mmrifledmortarbombs(Italy,March2008,
p.1),45percentwenttoAustriafortheacquisitionof60mmmortarbombs
(Italy,March2008,pp.1–2),and3percentwenttoItalyfortheacquisitionof
40mmgrenades(Italy,February2008,p.1)(seeTable2.4).Withrespectto
possiblefuturepurchases,Germany,Austria,andFrancewereidentifiedas
solesuppliersofabout70,00040mm,18,00060mm,and7,000120mmgre-
nades/cartridges/bombs,respectively,andGermanyandSwitzerlandwere
listedassuppliers(about50percenteach)for25mmcartridges(Italy,July
2008,pp.1–3).Inaddition,Germanywasalsolistedasthesupplierof5,100
Panzerfaust weapons systems with 8,000 18 mm rockets (Italy, September
2008,p.1),while60lightanti-tankweaponsystemswith20021mmtraining
rocketsweretobeacquiredfromNorway(Italy,June2008,p.1)(seeTable2.4).
In2009theonlybulletin thathadbeenpublishedbytheendof there-
searchperiodwastheFebruaryissue.Nevertheless,relevantinformationcan
beobtainedfromitsanalysis.BytheendofFebruary2009aboutEUR24.5
million(USD35million)hadbeeninvestedthusfarintheacquisitionoflarge
calibreammunition,aconsiderableincreaseovertheentire2008total,with55
percentoftheearly2009purchasesgoingtoFrancefortheacquisitionof120
mmrifledmortarbombs,33percenttoAustriafor60mmmortarbombs,and
theremaining12percenttoGermanyfortheacquisitionof40mmgrenades.
Inaddition,aboutEUR100,000(USD142,000)wasinvestedintheacquisition
oflightanti-tankweaponsystemsandrelatedmunitionsfromtheNorwegian
producerNammoRaufoss(seeTable2.5).
AnalysisThecontractionoftheoperatingbudgetsectoroftheItaliandefencefunction
budget in recentyears isoneof theelementsgeneratingdiscrepanciesbe-
tweenpossiblefuturepurchasesandconfirmedtransactionseachyear.The
mostevidentexampleistheabsenceofaconfirmedtransactionin2006,de-
spitethelonglistofpossiblefuturepurchasesgivenin2005.Furtherevidence
can be found in the fluctuating quantity of ammunition procured againstTabl
e 2.
5C
on
firm
ed t
ran
sact
ion
s in
200
9 an
d p
oss
ible
fu
ture
pu
rch
ases
wit
h a
n e
stim
ated
pro
cure
men
t d
ate
in 2
010
Year
Cal
ibre
Mod
el/T
ype
Qua
ntit
yTo
tal c
ost
(EU
r)
Type
of
cont
ract
Aw
arde
d to
Cou
ntry
2009
Con
firm
ed t
rans
acti
ons
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE/
DP
30,0
002,
779,
086
Sing
le s
ourc
eR
hein
met
all W
affe
M
uniti
on G
mbH
Arg
es
Ger
man
y
40 m
mG
rena
des/
HE/
frag
4,40
0
40 m
mG
rena
des/
illum
inat
ing
5,00
0
Gre
nade
s/fla
sh b
ang
opv
NIK
O20
0
60 m
mB
ombs
/HE
84 L
D25
,400
8,19
2,31
8Si
ngle
sou
rce
Hir
tenb
erge
r D
efen
ce S
yste
ms
Aus
tria
60 m
mB
ombs
/WP
smok
e 84
LD
4,50
0
60 m
mB
ombs
/Ill M
K2
(illu
min
atin
g)2,
000
120
mm
Bom
bs/P
R14
(HE)
10,4
3613
,554
,538
.12
Sing
le s
ourc
eTD
A A
rmem
ents
SA
SFr
ance
120
mm
Bom
bs/ (
illum
inat
ing)
2,22
6
Ligh
t ant
i-ta
nk w
eapo
n sy
stem
LA
W M
72A
560
101,
304
Sing
le s
ourc
eN
amm
o R
aufo
ssN
orw
ay
M
72A
5 A
WA
5, 2
1 m
m,
sub-
calib
re tr
aini
ng w
eapo
ns5
21 m
mM
72 L
AW
A5,
trai
ning
rock
ets
200
List
ed a
s ‘p
ossi
ble
futu
re p
urch
ases
’ for
201
0
——
——
——
—
Sour
ce: I
taly
(Feb
ruar
y 20
09)
68 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 69
‘possiblefuturepurchase’inthepreviousyear(e.g.seetheprocurementpattern
ofHE84LDbombsin2006,2007,and2008).Possiblereasonsforthesedis-
crepanciesmayincludebudgetcutsorbudgetadministration,variedopera-
tiveneeds,oradhocagreementswiththeproducer.
AccordingtotheDefence Contracts Bulletins,thesupplyofsmall-andlarge-
calibreammunitionfollowstwodifferentsystems.Thefewprocurementcon-
tractslistedforsmallcalibreammunitionareintendedtobeawardedona
competitivebasis,whileallprocurementcontractsforlargecalibreammuni-
tionaresinglesource,withthesoleexceptionof2,500120mmcartridgesac-
quiredthroughacompetitivecontractallocatedtoSouthKoreain2005.
MostofthelargecalibreammunitionacquiredbytheItalianMinistryofDe-
fenceissubjecttoindustrialpatents.Thislimitsthecompetitivenessofthemar-
ketbycreatingdefactomonopolisticsub-marketsforthemajorityoflargecalibre
ammunitionandheavilyaffects theratiobetweenimportedanddomestically
producedammunition.Fromtheanalysisofthebulletins,itispossibletoidentify
twodifferentwaysinwhichindustrialpatentsaffectthemarket.
1. Considering, for example, the 2009 procurement of 60 mm bombs for the
CommandomortarfromanAustriancompany,3theprocurementhadtobe
carriedoutthroughdirectnegotiationswiththecompany,whichwas,quoting
thebulletin,‘theonlycompanythatcanprovidethesubjectitems,qualified
withtheabovementionedmortar,beinginpossessionoftheindustrialpatent’.
2.Considering,forexample,the2009procurementof40mmgrenadesfrom
Germany,4theprocurementhadtobecarriedoutthroughdirectnegotia-
tionswiththecompany,which,quotingthebulletin,‘holdsanindustrial
patent-rightonthisspecificammunition’.
Inexample1,Italy’sweaponsystemchoiceforcedittodealwiththeAustrian
companymanufacturingcompatiblebombs.Inexample2,theproductionof
theammunitionitselfisregulatedbyanindustrialpatent.Inotherwords,the
firstexamplehighlightsthecaseofanobligatorychoiceoftheammunition
supplierdictatedbythespecificityoftheimplementingtool—inthisexample
themortar—whilethesecondexamplehighlightsthecaseofanobligatory
choiceofsupplierdictatedbythetypeofammunitionitself.
Whenfocusingonspecificcalibres,accordingtothebulletin,all60mm
mortarbombsand120mmrifledmortarbombs importedafter2005came
fromAustriaandFrance,respectively.About80percentofthe40mmgre-
nadeswereimportedfromGermany,withtheremaining20percentdomesti-
callyproduced.Thisgapisevenmoreevidentwhenanalysingthebudgetfor
thesepurchases,as94percentoftheamountallocatedtothepurchaseof40
mmgrenadeswenttoGermanyandonly6percenttoItaly.
According thebulletins,onlyonecontract for25mmammunitionwas
awardedafter2005,withanItaliancompanyassolebeneficiary.Neverthe-
less,throughananalysisofpossiblefuturepurchasesof25mmammunition,
itispossibletoidentifythreeadditionalsuppliersforthiscalibreinGermany,
Norway,andSwitzerland.
WhileunabletoconfirmpurchasesofsmallarmsammunitionthroughDefence
Contract Bulletins,relevantinformationwasobtainedfromthedataonconsump-
tion,detailedinthenextsection.Aprobablereasonfortheexclusionofsmallcali-
breammunitionfromthebulletinscanbefoundinthepossibilitythattheprocure-
mentcontractsofsuchammunitionfallbelowtheEUR1millionthreshold.
ConsumptionMethodologyAccesstotheentiremilitaryconsumptionofammunitionwasnotgranted.
Therefore,thefiguresincludedinthefollowingtablesarebasedonlyonthose
forthelargestlightinfantrybrigadeandonahighlyspecializedunitofthe
ItalianArmy.ThedatapresentedwasprovidedbyinternalsourcesintheItal-
ianArmy.Theextrapolationofthetrendsillustratedtotheentirearmyin-
cludedinthissectionisforillustrativepurposeonlyanditisnotmeantto
providestatisticallyaccuratefigures.5
DataTable2.6illustratesdataontheallocationandconsumptionofammunition
andmunitionsintendedfortrainingpurposesduringtheperiod2005–08for
thelargestbrigade(4,500–5,000soldiers)intheItalianArmy.6Thetableshows
that all small calibre ammunition consumed was produced in Italy, while
70 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 71
France supplied 120 mm PR14 (HE) rifled mortar bombs. The allocated
amountofammunitionandmunitionsfortrainingpurposesvarieddepend-
ingonwhetherornotthebrigadewasdeployedinoperations.The2006allo-
cated quantities of ammunition for training purposes were higher than in
otheryears,asthebrigadewasnotdeployedoutofareainthatyear.
Table2.7illustratesdataonammunitionacquisitionandconsumptionin
theperiod2007–08ofahighlyspecializedunitoftheItalianArmy.Thedata
refers toanoperativegroupofaround30soldierswho train in Italy for6
monthsandaredeployedintohigh-intensitytheatresfor6months.Thevery
uniqueanddelicatenatureoftheactivitiesconductedbysuchhighlyspecial-
izedunitsrequiresamuchmoreintensetrainingpriortodeploymentthan
thetraditionallightinfantryforces.Forthisreason,consumptionofsmallcal-
ibreammunitionissignificantlygreaterthanthatofthebrigade.
Inaddition,thehighlyspecializedunitmakesuseofweaponsthatrequire
specifictypesofammunitionnotalwaysavailablefromItalianproducers.In
particular,.308and.338long-range/snipercartridgesareimportedfromFin-
land and Switzerland, 12.7 mm cartridges are imported from the United
States,andallthe40mmgrenadesareimportedfromGermany.
AnalysisTheNationalArmamentDirectorateisthecentralauthorityresponsiblefor
theallocationofordinaryammunition,munitions,andexplosivedevicesto
all Italianarmed forcesunitsanddetermines thequantities tobeused for
training purposes and operations.Yearly allocations for training purposes
canvaryfromyeartoyearforoneormoreofthefollowingmainreasons:
• economicconstraints(e.g.budgetreduction);
• specialoperativenecessitiesoutofarea;and
• limitationsontheavailableammunition.
Forillustrativepurposesonly,thedataontheaverageallocationfortraining
purposesoftheconsideredbrigade(seeTable2.6)couldbeusedtoobtainan
approximationoftheaveragepersonalallocationforeachsoldier.Thisfigure
cannotbeconsideredaccurate,assoldiersindifferentroleswillreceiveand
consumedifferentamountsofammunition(e.g.logisticspersonnelwillcon-
sumelessthanoperativepersonnel).So,assumingthatthedatapresentedin
Table2.6refersto5,000soldiersandthatallsoldiersreceivethesameamount
ofammunition,eachsoldierwouldreceiveeachyearapproximately:
• 1035.56mmcartridgesofvarioustypes;
• 207.62mmNATOcartridges;
• 259mmcartridges;and
• 512.7mmcartridges.
Again for illustrativepurposesonly, ifweapproximate the30,000soldiers
composingthe117brigadesoftheItalianArmythatutilizesmallarmsaspri-
maryweapons,andthereforearethemajorconsumersofsmallcalibream-
munition,andifweassumethateachbrigadereceivedthesameallocationof
ammunition,wecouldobtainanapproximatedfigurefortheannualaverage
amountofammunitionallocatedfortrainingpurposes:
• 3,090,0005.56mmcartridgesofvarioustypes;
• 590,0007.62mmNATOcartridges;
• 750,0009mmcartridges;and
• 150,00012.7mmcartridges.
Theaggregatedconsumptionofsmallcalibreammunitionrelatedtothere-
mainingsixsupportbrigades,8whichtraintheirpersonnelintheuseofsmall
armsasweaponsforindividual,asset,andsiteprotection,canbereasonably
estimatedasanadditional25percentoftheabovementionedaveragequantities.
Oncemore,asthesefiguresarebasedontheassumptionthatallsoldiers
receivethesameallocationofammunition,theycanbeconsideredonlyforil-
lustrativepurposesandnotasaprecisestatisticalextrapolation.
Thissectionprovidedaninstructiveandreliableexampleoftheallocation
andconsumptionofsmall-andlarge-calibreammunitionforalightinfantry
brigadeandforahighlyspecializedunitoftheItalianArmy.Datahasshown
that consumed small calibre ordinary ammunition is mostly domestically
produced9 with a few exceptions, including long-range/sniper cartridges
thatareusuallyimportedfromFinland,Switzerland,andtheUnitedStates.
72 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 73
2007
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for p
orta
ble
firea
rm21
9,22
819
3,35
6Ita
ly
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for m
ount
ed fi
rear
m16
6,75
815
1,80
0Ita
ly
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O fo
r MG
42/
5995
,231
82,0
00Ita
ly
9 m
mC
artr
idge
s/9
mm
Par
abel
lum
22,2
339,
800
Italy
12.7
mm
Car
trid
ges/
PIT
M20
(arm
our p
ierc
ing,
ince
ndia
ry, a
nd tr
acer
)22
,233
9,80
0Ita
ly
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ligh
t ant
i-ta
nk49
48Ita
ly
2008
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for p
orta
ble
firea
rm22
2,47
721
2,44
0Ita
ly
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for m
ount
ed fi
rear
m37
3,87
028
8,20
0Ita
ly
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O fo
r MG
42/
5986
,707
48,4
50Ita
ly
9 m
mC
artr
idge
s/9
mm
Par
abel
lum
191,
664
174,
450
Italy
12.7
mm
Car
trid
ges/
PIT
M20
(arm
our p
ierc
ing,
ince
ndia
ry, a
nd tr
acer
)58
,394
45,4
00Ita
ly
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ligh
t ant
i-ta
nk16
347
Italy
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ant
i-ta
nk P
EPA
7676
Italy
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/PR
14H
E22
368
Fran
ce
Average
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges/
vari
ous
type
s51
5,08
863
0,31
6Ita
ly
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O fo
r MG
42/
5998
,426
91,0
50Ita
ly
9 m
mC
artr
idge
s/9
mm
Par
abel
lum
125,
390
121,
025
Italy
12.7
mm
Car
trid
ges/
PIT
M20
(arm
our p
ierc
ing,
ince
ndia
ry, a
nd tr
acer
)25
,182
19,1
76Ita
ly
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/var
ious
type
s19
411
2Ita
ly/F
ranc
e
Tabl
e 2.
6A
llo
cati
on
an
d c
on
sum
pti
on
fo
r tr
ain
ing
pu
rpo
ses
of
amm
un
itio
n a
nd
mu
nit
ion
s o
f th
e la
rges
t b
riga
de
in t
he
Ital
ian
Arm
y, c
on
tain
ing
4,50
0–5,
000
sold
iers
, 200
5–08
Year
Cal
ibre
Mod
el/T
ype
Qua
ntit
y al
loca
ted
Qua
ntit
y co
nsum
edC
ount
ry o
f pr
oduc
tion
2005
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for p
orta
ble
firea
rm12
7,84
858
2,42
0Ita
ly
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges/
trac
er fo
r por
tabl
e fir
earm
1,00
066
,200
Italy
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for m
ount
ed fi
rear
m88
,550
243,
400
Italy
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O fo
r MG
42/
5988
,550
143,
750
Italy
9 m
mC
artr
idge
s/9
mm
Par
abel
lum
94,7
6411
8,50
0Ita
ly
12.7
mm
Car
trid
ges/
PIT
M20
(arm
our p
ierc
ing,
ince
ndia
ry, a
nd tr
acer
)6,
900
16,5
05Ita
ly
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ligh
t ant
i-ta
nk21
21Ita
ly
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ant
i-ta
nk P
EPA
4810
8Ita
ly
2006
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for p
orta
ble
firea
rm47
8,40
047
4,20
6Ita
ly
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges/
trac
er fo
r por
tabl
e fir
earm
34,7
007,
840
Italy
5.56
mm
Car
trid
ges
for m
ount
ed fi
rear
m34
7,52
030
1,40
0Ita
ly
7.62
mm
Car
trid
ges/
NAT
O fo
r MG
42/
5912
3,21
790
,000
Italy
9 m
mC
artr
idge
s/9
mm
Par
abel
lum
192,
900
181,
350
Italy
12.7
mm
Car
trid
ges/
PIT
M20
(arm
our p
ierc
ing,
ince
ndia
ry, a
nd tr
acer
)13
,200
5,00
0Ita
ly
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ligh
t ant
i-ta
nk14
080
Italy
120
mm
Mor
tar b
ombs
/ant
i-ta
nk P
EPA
560
Italy
74 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 75
Grenades
40 m
m40
x 4
6 D
P92
1,00
022
831
320
11G
erm
any
40 m
m40
x 4
6 sm
oke
1,00
042
020
11G
erm
any
40 m
m40
x 5
3 hi
gh e
xplo
sive
dua
l pur
pose
500
038
520
15G
erm
any
40 m
m40
x 5
3 im
pact
sig
natu
re52
00
500
2011
Ger
man
y
40 m
m40
x 4
6 C
S ga
s1,
200
010
2011
Ger
man
y
40 m
m40
x 4
6 tr
aini
ng p
ract
ice
trac
er D
M 1
18 A
21,
500
475
1,58
220
09G
erm
any
* D
ata
refe
rs to
an
oper
ativ
e gr
oup
of a
roun
d 30
sol
dier
s w
ho tr
ain
in It
aly
for
6 m
onth
s an
d ar
e de
ploy
ed to
hig
h-in
tens
ity o
pera
ting
thea
tres
for
6 m
onth
s. H
ighl
y sp
ecia
lized
units
are
not
req
uire
d to
go
thro
ugh
the
cent
ral p
rocu
rem
ent a
utho
rity
and
are
abl
e to
acq
uire
and
con
sum
e am
mun
ition
and
mun
ition
s ac
cord
ing
to th
eir
spec
ific
need
s an
d
wea
pons
.
Tabl
e 2.
7A
mm
un
itio
n a
cqu
isit
ion
an
d c
on
sum
pti
on
of
a h
igh
ly s
pec
iali
zed
un
it o
f th
e It
alia
n A
rmy,
200
7–08
*
Type
Cal
ibre
Mod
elQ
uant
ity
acqu
ired
Qua
ntit
y co
nsum
ed,
2007
Qua
ntit
y co
nsum
ed,
2008
Stoc
k ex
piry
da
te
Cou
ntry
of
prod
ucti
on
Small calibre cartridges
9 m
mPa
rabe
llum
590,
000
280,
000
310,
000
—Ita
ly
5.56
mm
Ord
nanc
e1,
030,
000
610,
000
520,
000
—Ita
ly
.308
Subs
onic
6,60
01,
000
4,50
020
19Fi
nlan
d
.308
Scen
ar 1
67 g
rs (L
apua
)4,
900
01,
600
2019
Finl
and
.308
Scen
ar 1
67 g
rs (R
UA
G)
4,50
00
3,75
020
19Sw
itzer
land
.308
Scen
ar 1
75 g
rs (R
UA
G)
2,90
072
055
020
19Sw
itzer
land
.338
Lock
bas
e (L
apua
)3,
000
1,45
51,
250
2010
Finl
and
.338
Bal
l (R
UA
G)
1,10
00
7520
15Sw
itzer
land
.338
Arm
our p
ierc
ing
(RU
AG
)1,
000
540
100
2016
Switz
erla
nd
.338
Scen
ar (L
apua
)3,
000
1,72
077
020
10Fi
nlan
d
12.7
mm
Bar
rett
800
410
700
2016
US
12.7
mm
Arm
our p
ierc
ing-
ince
ndia
ry-t
race
r for
Bro
wni
ng5,
500
100
(bel
ts)
130
(bel
ts)
2012
US
Shotgun shells
12-g
auge
Ant
i-ri
ot3,
400
120
368
—Ita
ly
12-g
auge
Doo
r-br
each
ing
buck
shot
850
090
—Ita
ly
12-g
auge
Slug
roun
d9,
000
260
1,16
4—
Italy
76 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 77
Inthissection,wealsoderivedsomeapproximatedfigures,forillustrative
purposesonly,describing theestimatedannualammunitionallocationper
soldierandtheestimatedaggregateannualammunitionallocationofthe17
brigadesoftheItalianArmy.
ExportsMethodology
This sectionpresents theexportdata forammunitionandmunitions from
January2005throughDecember2008.
AllexportdatacamefromCoeweb,theForeignTradeStatisticsDatabase
ofISTAT,10whichwasaccessedinJune2009.Allammunitionexportdatais
generically categorized in the group ‘Bombs, grenades, torpedoes, mines,
missiles,cartridgesandotherammunitionandprojectilesandpartsthereof,
incl.buckshot,shotandcartridgewads,n.e.s.’Thedataincludestradeinter-
change both in value (given in euros) and in quantity (in weight by kilo-
grams),byarea,andbycountry.11Informationaboutthequantityandquality
ofavailabledataisverylimited.Inparticular,itisimpossibletocross-check
dataonexportedproductstoeachoftherecipientcountries.
Aggregateddataonexportsofammunitionformilitarypurposescouldbe
obtainedthroughanalysisoftheannualreportoftheItalianprimeministerto
parliamentthatdealswithexports,imports,andthetransitofarmamentsand
relatedmaterials(Italy.PresidenzadelConsigliodeiMinistri,2005–08).How-
ever,suchinformationhasnotbeenincluded,sinceonceagainthedataisnot
sufficientlydisaggregated.Theannualreportspecifiesthetotalvalueofthe
exportstoaspecificcountryalongwithacomprehensivelistofalltheitems
purchasedfromItaly,butdoesnotspecifyhowmuchwasspentoneachpar-
ticularitemonthelist,includingammunition.Theannualreportgivesalist
ofcountries that importedammunition fromItaly,butdoesnotdetermine
howmuchtheyspentspecificallyonammunition.Inaddition,thereportin-
cludesonlyagenericcategoryentitled‘ammunition’anddoesnotdiscrimi-
natebetweensmall-andlarge-calibreammunition.
Analysis of exports, 2005–08From2005to2008ItalyexportedanaverageofaboutEUR127million(USD
172million)peryear(about23,000tonnes)ofbombs,grenades,torpedoes,
mines,missiles,cartridges,andotherammunitionandprojectilesandparts
thereof,includingbuckshot,shot,andcartridgewads.Afterasignificantdrop
in2006(toEUR104million(USD137million)),exportsincreased,reachinga
maximumin2008ofaboutEUR140million(USD190million).Onaverage,
themainrecipientofItalianexportsisEurope(70percent),followedbythe
Americas(14percent),Asia(7percent),Africa(5percent),andOceania(4
percent).Particularlysignificantisthefactthattheconstantgrowthofthe
AsianandEuropeanmarketsharesince2005(from6percentto9percent
andfrom65percentto76percent,respectively)contrastswiththereduction
oftheAmericas’sharefrom22percentin2005to6percentin2008(seeTable2.8).
Byusingasub-regionalbreakdown,itispossibletoobtainamoredetailed
pictureoftherecipientsofexports.InAfrica,intermsofthevalueineuros,an
average62percentoftheimportedammunitionintheperiod2005–08went
toNorthAfricancountries(Algeria,Egypt,Morocco,andTunisia),withthe
remaining 38 per cent divided among other African countries. This gap
reacheditsmaximumin2007,whenamajorexporttoEgypt(EUR7.5million
(USD11million))broughttheNorthAfricanshareto84percent(seeTable2.9).
IntheAmericas,whileNorthAmericancountries(theUnitedStatesand
Canada)haveimportedabout75percentoftheaveragequantityofammuni-
tionbyweighttradedperyear,CentralandSouthAmericancountriesarethe
mainrecipientswhenconsideringtheaveragevalueofthetradedammuni-
tion,withashareof53percent,againstthe47percentofNorthAmerican
countries(seeTable2.10).
InEurope,thewidemajority(82percentonaverage)ofItalianexports
globally in2005–08weredirectedtocountrieswithintheEU27,12although
purchases by non-European countries have nevertheless increased signifi-
cantly,from11percentin2005to24percentin2008(seeTable2.12).
Asindicatedabove,inCoeweballItalianammunitionexportdataisgeneri-
callycategorizedinthegroup‘Bombs,grenades,torpedoes,mines,missiles,car-
tridgesandotherammunitionandprojectilesandpartsthereof,incl.buckshot,
shotandcartridgewads,n.e.s.’,andthisisthecategoryreflectedinTables2.8–2.12.
78 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 79
Tabl
e 2.
8R
egio
nal
an
alys
is, i
n v
alu
e an
d q
uan
tity
, of
Ital
ian
am
mu
nit
ion
exp
ort
s, 2
005–
08*
Ex
port
s, 2
005
Expo
rts,
200
6Ex
port
s, 2
007
Expo
rts,
200
8A
vera
ge e
xpor
ts, 2
005–
08
N
et
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%
Afr
ica
868,
682
4,72
2,50
04
1,02
0,85
63,
515,
489
389
9,33
710
,508
,339
81,
113,
747
4,36
1,20
13
975,
656
5,77
6,88
25
Am
eric
as1,
940,
666
30,0
00,1
4522
2,05
1,75
219
,706
,431
192,
393,
523
10,2
21,1
058
1,84
7,10
38,
858,
260
62,
058,
261
17,1
96,4
8514
Asi
a1,
726,
886
7,79
4,07
36
1,91
3,63
27,
211,
006
71,
914,
607
8,86
8,04
07
1,60
4,40
012
,289
,188
91,
789,
881
9,04
0,57
77
Euro
pe18
,353
,421
88,0
19,8
3465
17,0
52,0
8666
,646
,278
6417
,968
,108
95,9
71,8
9675
17,3
21,0
2510
6,21
0,58
476
17,6
73,6
6089
,212
,148
70
Oce
ania
an
d ot
her
coun
trie
s
940,
718
3,93
3,95
63
735,
338
7,21
0,78
27
498,
263
2,37
8,77
62
531,
625
8,13
1,75
86
676,
486
5,41
3,81
84
Wor
ld23
,830
,373
134,
470,
508
100
22,7
73,6
6410
4,28
9,98
610
023
,673
,838
127,
948,
156
100
22,4
17,9
0013
9,85
0,99
110
023
,173
,944
126,
639,
910
100
* Th
e ar
ea in
dar
k gr
ey s
how
s th
e av
erag
e da
ta o
ver
the
cons
ider
ed p
erio
d.
Sour
ce: I
STAT
(n.d
.)
Tabl
e 2.
9R
egio
nal
an
alys
is, i
n v
alu
e an
d q
uan
tity
, of
Ital
ian
am
mu
nit
ion
exp
ort
s to
Afr
ica,
200
5–08
*
Ex
port
s, 2
005
Expo
rts,
200
6Ex
port
s, 2
007
Expo
rts,
200
8A
vera
ge e
xpor
ts, 2
005–
08
N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(EU
R)
%
Nor
th
Afr
ica
546,
119
1,68
4,21
936
456,
683
1,34
9,68
238
484,
555
8,83
6,56
084
646,
724
2,38
2,56
655
533,
520
3,56
3,25
762
Oth
er
Afr
ican
co
untr
ies
322,
563
3,03
8,28
164
564,
173
2,16
5,80
762
414,
782
1,67
1,77
916
467,
023
1,97
8,63
545
442,
135
2,21
3,62
638
Afr
ica
868,
682
4,72
2,50
010
01,
020,
856
3,51
5,48
910
089
9,33
710
,508
,339
100
1,11
3,74
74,
361,
201
100
975,
656
5,77
6,88
210
0
*The
are
a in
dar
k gr
ey s
how
s th
e av
erag
e da
ta o
ver
the
cons
ider
ed p
erio
d.
Sour
ce: I
STAT
(n.d
.)
Tabl
e 2.
10R
egio
nal
an
alys
is, i
n v
alu
e an
d q
uan
tity
, of
Ital
ian
am
mu
nit
ion
exp
ort
s to
th
e A
mer
icas
, 200
5–08
*
Ex
port
s, 2
005
Expo
rts,
200
6Ex
port
s, 2
007
Expo
rts,
200
8A
vera
ge e
xpor
ts, 2
005–
08
N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Cen
tral
an
d So
uth
Am
eric
a
523,
490
17,7
28,0
6559
536,
745
14,9
67,3
6376
417,
260
1,73
9,19
817
315,
096
2,11
2,19
124
448,
148
9,13
6,70
453
Nor
th
Am
eric
a1,
417,
176
12,2
72,0
8041
1,51
5,00
74,
739,
068
241,
976,
263
8,48
1,90
783
1,53
2,00
76,
746,
069
761,
610,
113
8,05
9,78
147
Am
eric
as1,
940,
666
30,0
00,1
4510
02,
051,
752
19,7
06,4
3110
02,
393,
523
10,2
21,1
0510
01,
847,
103
8,85
8,26
010
02,
058,
261
17,1
96,4
8510
0
*The
are
a in
dar
k gr
ey s
how
s th
e av
erag
e da
ta o
ver
the
cons
ider
ed p
erio
d.
Sour
ce: I
STAT
(n.d
.)
80 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 81
Conclusion
Thisstudyhasexploredtheissueofsmall-andlarge-calibreammunitionasit
affectsItalythroughtheperspectivesofprocurement,consumption,andex-
ports.Thescarcityofavailabledatapreventedacomprehensivepictureofna-
tionalammunitionconsumptionbytheItalianmilitaryandlawenforcement
agencies.Consequently,consumptionfiguresincludedinthischapter,while
certainlyusefulinprovidingindicationsofthescaleofthephenomenon,can-
notbeconsideredasstatisticallyaccurateextrapolations.Asforexports,sta-
tisticsneitherfromtheannualarmamentsreportoftheItalianprimeminister
toparliamentnorfromCoeweballowthepublictoclearlyidentifywhoim-
portedwhat.
Over the years studied, the ItalianArmy has faced numerous changes
such asbudget cutsand internal restructuring towards anall-professional
military.Duringthistime,significantstepshavebeentakentowardsachiev-
inggreatertransparencyandaccountabilitydefenceprocurement.Themost
significantstepinthisdirectionistheestablishmentofavoluntaryinter-gov-
ernmentalregime,operatedonthebasisoftheEDACodeofConductonDe-
fenceProcurement,approvedbyEuropeandefenceministersin2005.Theul-
timate goal of this regime, of which Italy is an SMS, is to promote fair
competition,transparency,accountability,andmutualsupport.
Despitethemainchallengesdescribedabove,theanalysisincludedinthis
chapterhasledtorelevantfindings.Byexaminingthecombinationofpro-
curement,consumption,andexportdata,itispossibletopiecetogetheran
accurateassessmentofItalianammunition.Thestudyhasrevealedthatwhile
themajorityofsmallcalibreammunitionisproducednationally,themajority
oflargecalibreammunitionandmunitionsappearstobeimported,witha
prevalenceofEuropeansuppliers.AccordingtotheDefence Contracts Bulle-
tins,thepresenceofindustrialpatentsfortheproductionofthemajorityof
largecalibreammunitionusedbytheItalianarmedforcesclearlylimitscom-
petitioninthemarketbyforcingtheuseofsingle-sourcecontractsandheavily
affectstheratiobetweennationallyproducedandimportedammunition.The
studyhasalsoshownthatthemajorcontractionoftheresourcesavailablefor
operations,training,andlogisticshashadconsequencesfortheItalianarmedTabl
e 2.
11R
egio
nal
an
alys
is, i
n v
alu
e an
d q
uan
tity
, of
Ital
ian
am
mu
nit
ion
exp
ort
s to
Asi
a, 2
005–
08*
Ex
port
s, 2
005
Expo
rts,
200
6Ex
port
s, 2
007
Expo
rts,
200
8A
vera
ge e
xpor
ts, 2
005–
08
N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue (E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%
Cen
tral
Asi
a62
,580
351,
227
579
,639
820,
907
1111
1,54
384
0,95
19
90,7
0211
1,54
31
86,1
1653
1,15
76
East
ern
Asi
a1,
296,
374
5,24
3,86
067
1,36
7,07
34,
761,
636
661,
119,
829
5,22
5,57
659
1,23
4,19
65,
575,
702
471,
254,
368
5,20
1,69
458
Mid
dle
East
ern
coun
trie
s
367,
932
2,19
8,98
628
466,
920
1,62
8,46
323
683,
235
2,80
1,51
332
279,
502
6,26
6,19
652
449,
397
3,22
3,79
036
Asi
a1,
726,
886
7,79
4,07
310
01,
913,
632
7,21
1,00
610
01,
914,
607
8,86
8,04
010
01,
604,
400
11,9
53,4
4110
01,
789,
881
8,95
6,64
010
0
*The
are
a in
dar
k gr
ey s
how
s th
e av
erag
e da
ta o
ver
the
cons
ider
ed p
erio
d.
Sour
ce: I
STAT
(n.d
.)
Tabl
e 2.
12R
egio
nal
an
alys
is, i
n v
alu
e an
d q
uan
tity
, of
Ital
ian
am
mu
nit
ion
exp
ort
s to
Eu
rop
e, 2
005–
08*
Ex
port
s, 2
005
Expo
rts,
200
6Ex
port
s, 2
007
Expo
rts,
200
8A
vera
ge e
xpor
ts, 2
005–
08
N
et w
eigh
t (k
g)V
alue
(E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue (E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue (E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue (E
UR
)%
Net
wei
ght
(kg)
Val
ue
(EU
R)
%
EU27
15,4
90,5
8278
,418
,262
8913
,763
,495
53,0
59,6
1380
14,7
09,1
6379
,594
,714
8312
,629
,333
80,8
92,4
0476
14,1
48,1
4372
,991
,248
82
Non
-EU
Eu
rope
an
coun
trie
s
2,86
2,83
99,
601,
572
113,
288,
591
13,5
86,6
6520
3,25
8,94
516
,377
,182
174,
691,
692
25,3
18,1
8024
3,52
5,51
716
,220
,900
18
Euro
pe18
,353
,421
88,0
19,8
3410
017
,052
,086
66,6
46,2
7810
017
,968
,108
95,9
71,8
9610
017
,321
,025
106,
210,
584
100
17,6
73,6
6089
,212
,148
100
*The
are
a in
dar
k gr
ey s
how
s th
e av
erag
e da
ta o
ver
the
cons
ider
ed p
erio
d.
Sour
ce: I
STAT
(n.d
.)
82 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 83
forces invariousareas, includinga significant reduction in theacquisition
andconsumptionoflargecalibreammunition.
Regardingsmallcalibreammunition,despitetheregularconsumptionin
recentyears,ashighlightedbythedata,thereisnorecordofawardedcon-
tracts inDefence Contracts Bulletins.Twopossibleexplanations for thisdis-
crepancycanbeidentified.Firstly,asordinaryammunitionusuallyexpires
afterseveralyears,theroundsconsumedintheperiod2005–08couldhave
beenprocuredthroughoneormorecontractsbeforeJanuary2005and,there-
fore,didnotemergefromthebulletinsanalysedinthisstudy.Thesecondrea-
soncouldbetheamountofammunitionprocuredwitheachcontract:ifthe
resulting value falls below the EUR 1 million threshold, publication in
thebulletins,withtheresultingcompetition,wouldnotberequired.
WhilerecognizingtheItaliangovernment’sdesiretoprotecttheindustrial
privacy of Italian ammunition producers, more disaggregated data would
certainlybedesirable.ThisisparticularlytruewhenexaminingItalianam-
munitionexports.Thecurrentdataallowsfordestinationcountryidentifica-
tiononly,leavingalargegapinourknowledgeofthespecifictypesofammu-
nition exported. From the data available, it is nevertheless possible to
determinethatthemajorityofexportedItalianammunitionremainswithin
theEuropeanUnionarea.
Endnotes
1 SMSsareallowedotherexceptionsintermsofspecificprocurementswithoutcompetition,suchasincasesofpressingoperationalurgency,forfollow-onworkorsupplementarygoodsandservices,orforextraordinaryandcompellingreasonsofnationalsecurity.Insuchexceptionalcases,SMSswill,oncetheprocurementroutehasbeenconfirmed,provideanexplanationtotheEDA,initscapacityasmonitoroftheregimeonbehalfofSMSs.DatawillalsobeprovidedtotheEDAoncollaborativeprocurements(EDA,2005).
2 AuthorinterviewwithinternalsourcesintheItalianArmy,Livorno,June2009.3 Italy(July2008,sec.1,p.1,contractno.1434/303)andlistedasawardedinItaly(February
2009,sec.3,p.1).4 Italy(July2008,sec.1,p.1,contractno.1429/303)andlistedasawardedinItaly(February
2009,sec.3,p.2).5 Theinformationprovidedinthedescriptiveparagraphsisbasedontheinterviews
conductedbytheauthorwithinternalsourcesoftheItalianArmy.
6 TheItalianArmycontains17operativebrigades:5lightinfantrybrigades,2mountaintroopsbrigades,1parachutebrigade,1airbornebrigade,1armouredbrigade,1cavalrybrigade,1helicopterbrigade,1artillerybrigade,1anti-airartillerybrigade,1signalsbrigade,1engineeringbrigade,and1reconnaissanceinformationsurveillancetargetacquisition—electronicwarfare(RISTA-EW)brigade.The16brigadesnotconsideredinthispaperconsistofaround2,500–2,800soldierseach.
7 5lightinfantrybrigades,2mountaintroopsbrigades,1parachutebrigade,1airbornebrigade,1armouredbrigade,1cavalrybrigade.
8 1helicopterbrigade,1artillerybrigade,1anti-aircraftartillerybrigade,1signalsbrigade,1engineeringbrigade,1RISTA-EWbrigade.
9 ThemajorItaliansupplieristheFiocchicompany,whichprovidesallconventionalsmallcalibreammunitiontotheItalianarmedforces.
10 Coewebistheonlineinformationsystemdedicatedtoforeigntradestatistics,providingonamonthlybasisawealthofinformationontradeflowsbetweenItalyandtherestoftheworld.ThisinformationisderivedfromthesingleadministrativedocumentandfromIntrastatformsacquiredbythecustomsagencyasregardsextra-EUandintra-EUflows,respectively.ThedatacollectedandreceivedbyISTATisfirstprocessedincompliancewithEuropeanCommunityregulationsapplyingtostatisticsonforeigntrade,andsubsequentlyrevisedandvalidatedbyreviewers.Thedataprocessingprocedurealsoprovidesstatisticaldataonoperatorsandbusinesses,aswellastimeseriesbyindexlinks(ISTAT,n.d.).
11 HarmonizedSystem,ch.93,‘Armsandammunition;partsandaccessoriesthereof’,heading06.12 TheEU27areAustria,Belgium,Bulgaria,theCzechRepublic,Cyprus,Denmark,Estonia,
Finland,France,Germany,Greece,Hungary,Ireland,Italy,Latvia,Lithuania,Luxembourg,Malta,theNetherlands,Poland,Portugal,Romania,Slovakia,Slovenia,Spain,Sweden,andUnitedKingdom.
Bibliography
ArchivioDisarmo.2005.Le esportazioni di armi Italiane nel 2005: I dati ufficiali.<http://www.archiviodisarmo.it>
——.2007.La relazione annuale del Presidente del Consiglio al Parlamento sulle esportazioni di armi nel
2006: Analisi e commento.<http://www.archiviodisarmo.it>——.2008.Le esportazioni di armi Italiane nel 2007: Analisi dei dati e considerazioni.<http://www.
archiviodisarmo.it>——.2009.Le esportazioni di armi Italiane nel 2008: Analisi dei dati e considerazioni.<http://www.
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Italy.MoD(MinistryofDefence).2009.Army Report 2008. Specialeditionof Rivista Militare.<http://www.esercito.difesa.it/root/chisiamo/rivmil_rappo.asp>
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Chapter 3 An Initial Survey of Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition Production, Procurement, Allocation, Exports, and Transfers by the French Law Enforcement and Military ServicesPierre Gobinet
Introduction
Theinitialaimofthisworkingpaperwastodetermineprocurementandcon-
sumption patterns for small arms and light weapons ammunition by the
Frenchgendarmerie,police,andarmedforces.Theterm‘ammunition’refers
inthiscontexttobothsmall(<12.7mm)andlargecalibreammunition(>12.7
mm),andincludesmortars(50–120mm),grenadelaunchers,recoillessrifles,
rocketlaunchers(firingrockets120mmorsmaller),andcartridgesforanti-
materielandsniperriflesandheavymachineguns.
Duetotimeconstraints,andtoanobviousreticenceonthepartofthere-
spectiveFrenchprocurementauthoritiestoprovidedetailedfiguresonallof
thesecategories,theauthorselectedthemostpopularandwidelystandard-
izedcalibresinordertoaddresstheissuecomparativelyandattemptana-
tionalcompilation.Totheextentpossible,theauthorinitiallyrequesteddata
goingbackseveralyears,andsoughttodifferentiatequantitiesandpercent-
agesof importedammunition from thatmanufactured inFrance.Theend
goalwastoaccountforvariancesandpatternsinprocurementandconsump-
tion.Inaddition,theauthorsoughttodeterminetheexistenceandextentof
anyrecordedammunitiontransfersperformed‘in-house’bythearmedservices
themselvestocountriesthattraditionallyreceiveFrenchmilitaryassistance.
Thefirstsectionintroducesthemethodologyusedinthisstudy.Acombi-
nation of open-source materials and either face-to-face or telephone inter-
viewswithFrenchprocurementagenciesandofficialsallowedtheauthorto
86 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 87
obtaindataregardingthemanufacturingandprocurementofammunitionby
theFrenchforces.Anumberofusefulpointsofcontactweresolicitedand
kindlycontributedpreliminarydataandbackgroundinformationregarding
basicprocurementandallocationfigures.However,theissueofammunition
transfers remains problematic and controversial: data, if recorded, is frag-
mentedwithineachadministrationand the fewofficialswhoare rigorous
enoughtocompileitdonothavetheauthoritytodivulgeit.
ThesecondsectionisdevotedtoFrenchammunition-manufacturingca-
pacity and starts out by placing it within the wider scheme of the French
weapons industry.Thishelps tounderstand thepriorities (or lack thereof)
giventoammunitionmanufacturing.Researchfindingsshowthatsmallcali-
bre, cartridge-based manufacturing is no longer nationalized and that the
Frenchadministrationresortstoimportsandtenderinvitationstosupplyits
lawenforcementandarmedserviceswith9mmand5.56mmrounds.Medi-
umandlargecalibreammunitionisstillproducedinFrancebyoneconsorti-
um,whichcatersforFrenchforcesandexportsasubstantialamountof its
production abroad. The European Energetics Corporation (EURENCO) is
usedinthisinstanceasacompanycasestudytoillustratethecontradictions
oftheFrenchadministrationinthefieldofammunitionmanufacturing.
The third section delves into the subject of ammunition allocation to
Frenchlawenforcementandarmyunits.Figuresareclearerforlawenforce-
mentunitsduetobettercontactswithgendarmerieandpoliceheadquarters.
AllotherfigureswerekindlycontributedbytheDélégationgénéralepour
l’armement(DGA).Overall,mostsourceshighlightalackofbudgetandcon-
siderationofinternalplanningforammunitionallocationinthearmedforces.
Ammunitionisaconvenient,easilymodifiablevariableinabudget’sadmin-
istration,whichmayexplainthedifficultyinobtaininganydefinitiveyearly
figures.The trendpoints towardsnotenoughammunitionrather than too
much,andthisisexemplifiedbyopen-sourceparliamentaryreportsondo-
mesticandoverseas theatresofoperationssuchasAfghanistan. In thisal-
legedcontextofdeprivation,theextentofammunitiontransferscarriedout
unilaterallybyindividualFrenchlawenforcementormilitaryunitsabroad
canbequestioned.
Methodology
BasicpreliminaryInternetsearchesfocusedexclusivelyonFrenchlanguage
results.Thismethodrevealedaninterestingarrayofofficialparliamentary
reportsandplenarysessiontranscriptsmadeaccessibletothepublicviathe
websitesoftheNationalAssemblyandtheMinistryofDefence.Asubstantial
amountof informationregardinggenerictrendsandnon-quantitativedata
canthusbeacquiredviatheInternet.Althoughthesereportsdonotprovide
recentstatisticsorquantitativedata,theyrefertorecentandactualtrendsin
Frenchammunitionmanufacturingandprocurementandpavethewayfor
furtheravenuesofresearch.Oncethesesourceswereexploited,theauthor
ascertainedwhetherthistopicwasalreadycoveredbyexistingresearchcar-
riedoutbyFrenchthinktanksandNGOs.Resultswerediscouraging.Ac-
cordingtotheLyon-basedObservatoiredesarmements,compilingaccurate
ammunitionpurchasingdatainFranceisnotfeasible,sincetherearenocen-
tralizedammunitionrecordsbridgingthedemandsofthevariousministries
(defence, the interior,finance,etc.).1Combinedammunitionallocationdata
hasneverbeenpublishedbyorsubmittedtoparliament,andpublicdocu-
mentspertainingtoweaponsmanufacturingandexportsseldomdisaggre-
gateammunitionstatistics.
Theauthorthensoughttoidentifythemostadequatesourcesandpoints
ofcontactwithintheFrenchadministrationthatwerelikelytoprovideup-to-
date,consolidated informationonFrenchammunitionprocurement.There
areseveraldifficultiesinherenttopinpointingtheseindividualsandacquir-
ingthistypeofdata:
• Finding the appropriate service involved:Francehastwomajornational
lawenforcementservices(thecivilianPolicenationaleornationalpoliceand
themilitaryGendarmerienationaleornationalgendarmerie),threemilitary
corps(army,airforce,andnavy),acustomsauthority,apenitentiaryadminis-
tration,andanenormousadministrativeapparatustaskedwithcoordinating
their respective procurement and logistics. Furthermore, logistical preroga-
tivesinvolvingammunitionmanagementareoftendecentralizeddowntore-
gionalcommandlevel,thusmakinggeneralstatisticsdifficulttocompile.
88 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 89
• The nature of the data required: Each administration keeps its own
records,and,eventhoughitmayagreetodivulgetheserecords,thereis
currentlynocommon,centralizedsetofrecordsreferringtotheprocure-
mentandallocationofammunition.Oftenthedatahasyettobecompiled
withineachserviceandofficialswillnotbothercompilingitforthebenefit
ofaforeignprojecttheyarenotyetfamiliarwith.
Oncetheappropriatepointofcontactwasidentified,preliminarytelephone
contactwasmadeandatailoredletterofrequestwassentbytheauthorinor-
dertoexplainthenatureofthesurveyandallowtimeforthecontactperson
togatheralltheelementsrequired.Asidefromthegendarmeriepointofcon-
tact,findingtherestoftheindividualswaslargelytheresultofatrial-and-
errorprocess.Allthecontactsandinterviewswereinitiatedbetweentheend
ofAprilandthebeginningofJuly2009.Therequesteddatawasoftenavaila-
blebutunprocessed,and theofficials requestedclearanceandhierarchical
authorization before divulging any figures. No official documents were
handedover,andaccesstothespecialforces,whichusuallyhavetheirown
decentralizedammunitionprocurementscheme,wasnotgranted.
French ammunition-manufacturing capacity
Althoughthisstudyfocusesmainlyon theprocurementandconsumption
patternsofsmall-andlarge-calibreammunitionbytheFrenchgendarmerie,
nationalpolice,andarmedforces,theauthorsoughttoframethedatawithin
thegeneralbackgroundofFrenchweaponsproductionandprocurementfor
comparativepurposes.Twomaincategoriesofopensourceswere initially
usedtoacquirerecentfigures,trends,andreliablestatisticsonFrance’scur-
rentarmsandammunitionproductioncapacity:thelatest2006and2007an-
nual arms exports reports to parliament (France. Ministère de la Défense,
2007b;2008) andanumberofparliamentarydiscussions,comments,andde-
bates regarding the Ministry of Defence’s latest annual budget allocations
giveninthebudgetsfor2008and2009.
Background figures on the French defence industry
Availableopensourcessuchastheonespreviouslygivenprovideafairlyac-
curatepictureofthestateoftheFrenchdefenceindustryanditsimportance
inthecountry’soveralleconomyoverthepastsixyears(France.Assemblée
nationale,2003,para.1).Themaincharacteristicsoftheindustryare:
• anestimated4,000companiesandseverallargeindustrialgroups;
• an average annual turnover of approximately EUR 14 billion (USD 15.8
billionin2003),EUR4.5 billion(USD5.09billionin2003)ofwhichisgener-
atedbyexports;and
• morethan170,000jobsdirectlyinvolved,50,000ofwhichcouldbedirectly
linkedtoarmsexports (France.MinistèredelaDéfense,2009,p.5),result-
inginthearms-manufacturingindustrybeingthusconsideredanimpor-
tantemploymentsector.
The French government’s 2008 annual arms exports report to parliament
(France.MinistèredelaDéfense,2009,p.11)showsthatFranceroughlyranks
as theworld’s fourth largestweaponsexporter (7.7percentofworldwide
sales),behindtheUnitedStates(52.3percent),UK(13.7percent),andRus-
sianFederation(8.2percent),andiscloselyfollowedbyIsrael(5percent).
OrdersandpurchasesofFrenchweapons increased fromEUR5.66billion
(USD 7.75 billion) in 2007 to EUR 6.58 billion (USD 9.67 billion) in 2008
(France.MinistèredelaDéfense,2009,p.16).AccordingtotheFrenchNGO
Observatoiredesarmements,France logicallyseeks toboost itsarmssales
andfacetheever-strengtheningcompetition(Collin,2008).Tothisend,suc-
cessivereportstoparliament,originallyintendedascontroltoolstomonitor
Frencharmsexports,haveprogressivelybeenturnedintosemi-promotional
brochurestomarketFrenchmilitaryequipment.Theyare,however,usefulto
understandanddecipherFrance’scurrentarmsproductionandtradecapacity.
Thegovernment’sstatedobjectiveforoverallregisteredordersin2008was
EUR6billion(USD8.82billion),andthistargetwassetatEUR7billion(USD
9.54billion)for2010.Francethushopestoeventuallyincreaseitsshareoftheglo-
balarmsmarketto13percent,roughlythesameasthatoftheUK(Collin,2008).
90 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 91
Current trendsTheworldwideweaponsbusinessisextremelycompetitiveandmostmanufac-
turersrelyonmassiveexportcontractstosustaintheirmarginsandprofits.For
theFrenchgovernment,salvationforitsnationalweaponsindustrylobbylies
incross-border,pan-EuropeanconsolidationtosafeguardtheEU’sindustrial
defencebase.TheFrenchgovernmentstillholdssubstantialstakesinThales
(27percent),Safran(31percent),DCNS(75percent),Nexter(100percent),
andSociéténationaledespoudresetd’explosifs(SNPE)(100percent),which
areallheavilyreliantonthedomesticmarket(Jane’sInformationGroup,2009).
Franceis,however,inapositionwhereitcannolongeraffordtopurchasearms
exclusivelyfromitsownnationalindustry,thereforethemorearmscanbesold
abroad,themoreproductioncostsforthisequipmentwilldecrease,andthisin
turnisexpectedtofacilitatearmspurchasesandequipmentprocurementfor
French forces. Ironically, therefore, exports reduceproductioncosts,making
theweaponscheaperforFrenchforcestobuydomestically.
TheFrenchgovernmenthasalwaysbeentightlyinvolvedinthepermanent
restructuringprocessofboththeFrenchandtheEuropeandefenceindustries,
e.g.withthecreationoflargeconglomeratessuchasEADS(EuropeanAero-
nauticDefenceandSpaceCompany)orThales.Thisstate-sponsoredeconomic
rationalizationisnotuniquetoFranceandappliestomostWesternEuropean
countries.Franceconsidersthatitsnationaldefenceindustryisatokenofna-
tionalautonomyanddecision-making freedomon the internationalagenda.
Thisapproach,onceagain,issharedbyanumberofEUcountriesandefforts
havebeenmadetouniteproductionendeavoursandcutproductioncosts.The
complexityofarmssystemsledtotheappearanceandprogressivesupremacy
ofEuropeanandinternationalindustrialgroupsthatcouldmeettheR&Dcosts
andassumetherisksoflarge-scaleweapons-manufacturingprogrammes.
Accordingly, French authorities sought to compartmentalize their mili-
taryequipmentrequirementsintothreedistinctcategories, whichareclearly
delineated in the national military programme outline covering the years
2009–14(France.Assembléenationale,2008d,s.4.1;2009e):
• equipmentthatpertainsexclusivelytotherealmofFrenchnationalsovereignty
andautonomousdefencepotential,includingnuclearcapacityanddeterrence;
• militaryequipmentthatcouldobviouslybenefitfromEuropeancoopera-
tion—thisinitiativewaskick-startedin1997byFrance,theUK,andGer-
many,whosoughttoconsolidatetheirrespectivedefenceindustries.Some
examplesarethecreationofEADS,Thalesinitiatingasuccessfulmultina-
tionalstrategy,andthelaunchofintegratedarmsprogrammessuchasthe
AirbusA 400 Mfreightaircraft;and
• militaryequipmentthatisalreadyproduced,oftenworldwide,onalarge
scaletoreducemanufacturingcosts,andwhichcanthereforebepurchased
cheaperabroad—inthepresentcase,smallcalibreammunition.
Dire straits for French ammunition-manufacturing capacityFrenchammunitionmanufacturinghaduntil recentlybeenmainly carried
outbyGIAT Industries,Manuhrin,orAnthena.However,itfailedtoremain
affordableinaEuropeanarmsproductionschemedominatedbyunrelenting
competition.Intimesofeconomichardshipandbudgetrestraints,thecom-
petitivenessofmanufacturingcompanieswasaprerequisiteiftheywantedto
obtaincontractsandmeetbusinessdeadlinesandrequirements.GIATIndus-
tries was often deemed too expensive in this regard. It progressively sub-
contracted and transferred its small arms and light weapons ammunition
manufacturing portfolio to small companies that could produce cheaper
rounds.Anarmslegislationproposaldated18July2007statesthat: ‘asre-
gardssmallarmsandammunition,allcalibresincluded,Franceisundergo-
ingmassivedeindustrialization.Land-basedarmament,representedbyGIAT
Industries,doesnotfarewell’(France.Assembléenationale,2007c).
The restructuring of GIAT Industries into Nexter in 2006 allowed the
group’s ammunition-manufacturing capacity to be substantially updated
withintheNexterMunitionssubsidiary.Nextersuccessfullycarriedonwith
the GIAT 2006 business plan, which originally called for a five-year, EUR
85 million (USD 106.76 million) medium calibre ammunition procurement
planinitiatedin2004.Tothisend,NexterMunitionsinvestedinanewplant
inLaChapelleStUrsin,Bourges.However,thisfacilityishighlydependent
onthestabilityandcontinuityofgovernmentordersandpurchases(France.
Assembléenationale,2009a).
92 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 93
NexterMunitionsiscurrentlyFrance’sonlycompanywiththetechnicaland
industrialknow-howtomanufacturemediumandlargecalibreammunitionin-
tendedmainlyforcannonweaponsystems(20–25–30mm).Alongwithitssub-
sidiaries,Nexterexportsarangeofproducts,suchastheCaesarartillerysys-
tem.Largecalibreammunitionformortars(81mmforinfantryand120mmfor
artillery)isstillmanufacturedandexportedbyTDAArmementinLaFertéSt
Aubin,aThalessubsidiary.Grenadelaunchers(basse vitesse létalité réduite)are
stillmanufacturedbyALSETEX,asubsidiaryoftheLACROIXgroup.Rocket
launcherammunitionisreportedlynolongermanufacturedinFrance.
However,althoughFrancehaskeptanindustrialammunition-manufac-
turingcapacityformediumandlargecalibreswithNexterMunitions,itpur-
chasesandimportsallofitssmallcalibreammunitionfromabroad.2Accord-
ing to DGA, the last French company to manufacture small arms calibre
ammunition,Anthena,ceaseditsactivitiesin2007.3
The case of SNPE’s EURENCO provides an appropriate example. An
April2009parliamentaryreportmentionstheexpectedandcontroversialpri-
vatizationofSNPE,France’sonlyammunitionpowdermanufacturer(France.
Assemblée nationale, 2009d). SNPE’s current turnover is estimated at ap-
proximatelyEUR640 million(USD869million).TheFrenchgovernmenthas
intendedtoprivatizeSNPEforawhile,believingthatthegrouphadtoun-
dergosubstantialchangesifitweretosurvive(France.Assembléenationale,
2009c).Somepersonnelcutswereannouncedon7January2009(France.As-
sembléenationale,2009b).
SNPE’s subsidiary responsible for ammunition component production,
EURENCO,isinverypoorfinancialcondition(France.Assembléenationale,
2009b)andwoulddoubtlessbenefitfromclosecooperationwithNexter.This
couldtransferthedebatetotheEuropeanlevelandstillleaveroomforna-
tionalsovereigntyconcerns.CreatedinJanuary2004,EURENCOisaninde-
pendentsubsidiaryofSNPEmatériauxenergétiques,andmainlymanufactures
powderandexplosivesintendedforammunition,shells,andsmallmissiles.It
isjointlyownedbySNPEmatériauxenergétiques(60.2percent),Sweden’sSaab
(19.9percent),andPatria(19.9percent),aFinnishcompany.EURENCOhasan
annualturnoverexceedingEUR140million(USD191million),withmorethan
800employees(withEURENCOFrancerepresentinglessthan400 employees)
andfiveindustrialplantslocatedinBelgium(Clermont),Finland(Vihtavuori),
France(Sorgues,Bergerac),andSweden(Karlskoga)(EURENCO,2010).Accord-
ing to the Eurosatory arms show Internet site, EURENCO has an Explosive
ChargesandAdditivesBusinessUnitandaPropellantsandPropellingCharges
BusinessUnit,thelatterbeingresponsiblefor:
singleandmultibasepropellants,sphericalpowders(manufacturedby
the Belgian subsidiary PB Clermont), nitrocellulose and double base
premixpasteformilitarysmall,mediumandlargecaliberammunition
inadditiontoreloadingpowdersforcivilcartridgesandignitionpow-
dersformediumandlargecaliberammunition(EURENCO,2010).
Thisprivatizationprocess,whichisveryunlikelytostartearlierthan2011,is
stronglycriticizedbyFrenchpoliticiansaslackingstrongindustrialgoalsand
possiblyjeopardizingFrenchammunitionautonomy.TheplantinSorguesis
considered to be France’s only remaining explosives manufacturing plant
thus,accordingtoDGA,thecompanystillholdsstrategicpotential.4Itisable
toproduceammunitionfortheFrencharmedforcesandshouldthusmain-
tainthebulkofitsmanufacturingcapacityinFrance.Thisisacontradictory
standbecausesofarthestateseemsnevertohaveeitherinvestedenoughin
thecompanyororderedenoughammunitiontokeeptheproductionfacility
goinghealthily.EURENCO’sdifficultiesareduetodelaysintheplacingand
processingofstateorders.Meetingbothends—strategicrelevanceandindus-
trialcompetitiveness—willdoubtlessprovetobeadifficulttask.Themost
likelysolutionmentionedinthereportsiscooperationinthisfieldwithNex-
ter(Jane’sInformationGroup,2009).
However,Francehasmaintainedindustrialcapacityinthefieldofammu-
nition-manufacturing equipment. According to Groupe de recherche et
d’informationsurlapaixetlasécurité(GRIP),ManurhinEquipmentisoneof
thebiggestproducersofsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunition-manu-
facturingequipment,alongwithBelgium’sNewLachaussée,EDBEngineer-
ing,andGermany’sFritzWerner.AccordingtotheGRIPstudy,asurprising90
percentoftheworld’smodern(meaningNATO-compatible)militaryammuni-
tion-manufacturing plants were apparently set up and tailored by German,
French,orBelgiancompanies(Anders,2005,para.3).
94 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 95
Research findingsAllocation to law enforcement servicesInMay2003theFrenchInteriorMinistrysignedacontractwithJ.P.Sauer&Sohn’s French partner Rivolier SA for the provision of 250,000 SIG SauerSP2022pistolsdestinedforgendarmerie,nationalpolice,customs,andpeni-tentiaryadministrationfieldunits(SIGSauer,2008).Thisjointprocurementcontractwasintendedtoleadtosubstantialmaintenanceandprocurementsavings and would logically imply that ammunition procurement is nowstandardizedthroughouttheFrenchlawenforcementservices(France.As-sembléenationale,2007a).Sofartheauthorhas,however,beenunabletopin-point theadministration taskedwithammunitionprocurement forall lawenforcementservicesandinfactdoubtsitsexistence.Eachserviceseemstopublishunilateral tender invitations forammunitionbidsandmanages itsownammunitionrequirementsseparately.
Table 3.1Gendarmerie average annual ammunition procurement and allocation figures 9 mm Browning
12-gauge shotgun
5.56 mm 7.62 mm Tear gas grenades 56 mm
Flash-ball 44 x 83 mm
TASEr pistol cartridges
Number of rounds purchased annually
10 million
No purchases: procurement from national stockpiles
800,000 220,000 10,000 15,400 13,500
Number of rounds allocated to units annually
11 million
1.49 million 3.6 milliona
160,000 7,800 15,000 1,000
Recent in-house exports/cessions
010,000b
0 0 0 0 0
Notes:
aMuch fewer are purchased (around 800,000 in 2009); the bulk are transferred or most likely sold to the
gendarmerie by the French Army.b Transferred or sold to the French Navy.
Source: Figures provided by Equipment Procurement Division, Direction générale de la gendarmerie nationale
(DGGN), Bureau des matériels
National gendarmerieIn-house ammunition management practices also differ with each service.
Forinstance,thenationalgendarmerieseparates‘practice’ammunitionfrom
‘service’ammunition(carriedbyofficersondutyinthefield).Thebulkofthe
purchasedammunitionismadeupof9x19mmParabellumcartridgesfor
therecentlyissuedSIGSauerSP2022,and5.56x45mmNATOfortheFrench
Army’sFAMASstandardassaultrifle.AccordingtotheGendarmerieEquip-
mentProcurementDivision,theaverageannualammunitionpurchaseand
allocationfiguresforgendarmerieunitsareasshowninTable3.1.5
Eightypercentof thesmallarmsand lightweaponsammunitionpur-
chasedbythegendarmerie(Table3.1) isallocatedtotheunitsas ‘practice’
ammunition.Therestislabelledas‘service’ammunitionandisestimatedata
constantfourmillion9mmcartridgescirculatinginusebygendarmerieunits
inthefieldthroughoutFrance.This‘service’ammunitionisdecategorizedafter
fouryears(tomakesureserviceammunitionisrenewed)andtransferredwithin
eachunittothe‘practice’ammunitionstocks.Asinmostlawenforcementor-
ganizationsthroughoutEurope,thetasksanddutiesattributedtoofficershave
expandedtenfold,leavingverylittletimeforshootingpractice.Commanding
officersthereforemakeapointofspendingtheirrespectiveunits’entireyearly
ammunitionallocation.Gendarmerieunitsthusdonot‘pileup’surplusam-
munitiononayearlybasisandeachunitfirestheyear’sallocationof‘drill’am-
munitionaccordingtoarigorous,decentralizedshootingpracticeagenda.The
gendarmerie’sequipmentbudget is tight,ammunition isnotwasted,and is
boughtinjusttherightquantitybasedonthepreviousyear’sneeds.Asacon-
sequence,gendarmerieheadquartersdonotreportanysubstantialorsystem-
aticammunitiontransfers,whetherpaidorgratuitous,toanyforeigncountry.
Inter-agencytransfersdooccur,however,onaregularbasis.
Since France does not have a small calibre ammunition manufacturer,
therearethreemainsourcesofammunitionprocurementforthegendarmerie:
• cessionsfromthearmy(mainly5.56mmNATO);
• NATO’sMaintenanceandSupplyAgency;and
• publicinvitationstotender.Inthislastinstance,theinvitationispublicly
advertised in theBulletin officiel des annonces des marches publics6 and the
EDA’sElectronic Bulletin Board on Defence Contract Opportunities.7Thisoption
96 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 97
Tabl
e 3.
2N
atio
nal
po
lice
pu
rch
ases
, 200
4–09
Cal
ibre
20
0420
0520
0620
0720
0820
09
5.56
mm
Am
ount
Pr
ice
(EU
r)
320,
000
74,
630
620,
000
144,
714
807,
000
246,
308
160,
000
51,1
65—
30,
000
optim
ized
40,
544
630
,000
2
34,9
95
9 m
mA
mou
nt
Pric
e (E
Ur
)5,
290,
000
69
5,95
224
,900
,000
3,
744,
628
15,1
00,0
00
1,93
5,60
611
,800
,000
1,
660,
231
12,1
00,0
00
2,14
9,11
7 1
8,14
0,00
0 pr
actic
e 2
,933
,070
8 ,4
00,0
00 o
pera
tiona
l 2
,242
,356
.38
SPA
mou
nt
Pric
e (E
Ur
)3,
500,
000
638,
365
——
——
—
7.65
mm
Am
ount
Pr
ice
(EU
r)
1,50
0,00
0 27
8,14
0—
——
——
Sour
ce: F
igur
es p
rovi
ded
by D
APN
, Bur
eau
de l’
arm
emen
t et d
es m
atér
iels
tech
niqu
es
is least favoured by procurement officers, because the tender selection
processistediousandpainstakinglylong(atleastayearfromthetimethe
invitationispublished).However,suchcontractsaretypicallyissuedfora
durationoffouryearsandwillinclude,dependingonyearlybudgetallo-
cations,aminimumandmaximumquantityofammunitiontobemanufac-
turedanddeliveredbythetendertothefourlawenforcementadministra-
tions. Among the most common and recurrent tenderers that line up
proposals for these contracts are: RUAG (Switzerland), FN Herstal (Bel-
gium),MetallwerkElisenhütteNassau(Germany),CompanhiaBrasileira
deCartuchos(Brazil),IsraelMilitaryIndustries(Israel),BAE(UK),General
Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (Canada), General Dynamics
SantaBarbaraSistemas(Spain),andADCOM(UnitedArabEmirates).Pro-
curementandimportationwilllikelyinvolvedistributionthroughoneof
France’simporterssuchasSidam,Rivolier(Fiocchi),orHumbert.8
National police
Thenationalpoliceemploysimilarammunitionmanagementmethods.Am-
munitionisacquiredviapublicinvitationstotender,althoughitisunclear
whetherthesearenowjointlyissuedbythegendarmerie,thenationalpolice,
thepenitentiaryadministration,andcustoms,whichnowallusetheSIGSau-
erSP2022.TheDirectiondel’administrationdelapolicenationale(DAPN),
theadministrativepoliceheadquarters,allegedlycentralizetheirinvitations
totenderattheBureaudel’armementetdesmatérielstechniques,whichca-
tersforallterritorialunits,includingFrenchoverseasdepartmentsandcolo-
nies.Individualpoliceunitsthenpurchasetheammunitionusingtheirown
budgetallocations.Thereareveryfewsurplusstocks,sincepurchasesaretai-
lored to training and operational use. The only exception to this occurred
whenthepolice’s .357MgManurhinrevolversand7.65Uniqueautomatic
pistolswererecentlyreplacedbythe9mmSIGSauerSP2022.Therespective
surplusammunitionwascentralizedandisallegedlyundergoingdestruction.
Similarly,ammunitionisnotexportedortransferredabroadundertheaus-
picesofpolicecooperationagreements.
98 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 99
SincetheFrenchnationalpolicehaveroughly30percentmorepersonnel
thanthegendarmerie,onewouldexpecttheammunitionprocurementfig-
uresforthepolicetobeestimatedaccordingly.FiguresprovidedbyDAPN
contradict this assumption, however, by showing an obvious absence of a
year-to-yearprocurementpattern.Althoughpoliceheadquartersdidnotpro-
videallocationdata,purchasedatawaskindlyprovidedfortheperiod2004–09.9
Army unitsDatapertainingtotheFrencharmedforces’ammunitionallocationcanonlybe
obtainedviaofficialsources.Theauthorinitiatedasearchbyusingdocuments
produced by the Joint Staff Headquarters in 2007 (France. Ministère de la
Défense,2007a).Accordingtothisdocument,jointammunitionprocurementfor
thethreearmedservices,andformerlytosomeextentforthegendarmerie, is
planned and implemented by a commission, which gathers twice a year and
isheadedbythegeneralcommandingofficeroftheJointLogisticsDivision.This
commissioncoversprocurementandacquisitions,NATOidentificationandref-
erencing, and maintenance and surplus management. Its important role was
confirmedbytheseniorDGAofficial’sinterviewinMay2009,makingitanobvi-
ouspointofcontact.Severalunsuccessfulwrittenrequestsweresenttoarmylo-
gistics.FurtherresearchallowedtheauthortopinpointastaffofficeratArmy
StaffHeadquarterswhoexplicitlydeclared,bytelephone,thathishierarchycat-
egoricallyrefusedtocontributeanydatatotheproject.
Parliamentaryreportscommentingondefencebudgetallocationsfor2008
and 2009, respectively, tend to confirm that ammunition procurement has
been of relatively low concern compared to heavier, higher-value military
equipment.The2008defencebudgetallocationforesawobviouscutsinoper-
ationalappropriationsthatwouldinevitablyenduphinderingammunition
procurementforthearmy.InaFrenchparliamentaryreportdatedOctober2007
regardingthe2008defencebudgetallocationplan,thearmywasportrayedas‘a
consumerwhopurchasesthelatest,state-of-the-artpersonalcomputerbutdoes
not have enough cash to buy the printer, the Internet connection or the ink
cartridges’ (France. Assemblée nationale, 2007b; author’s translation). More
disturbing,thereportstatedthatFrenchArmysoldiersinAfghanistanwould
not have enough ammunition to operate efficiently in high-intensity conflict
zones.Operationalunitshadbeenrepeatedlyreportingsubstantialconstraints
regardingbothdrill(blank)andliveammunition,andadditionalbudgetcuts
wouldhavenegativeconsequencesfortheoperationalpotentialandsafetyof
troopsandpersonnel stationedabroad (France.Assembléenationale,2007b).
Thelackofblankammunitionhinderedplatoondrillpractice,andstaffofficers
wereaskedtoresorttodubiousfieldsimulations.
Stocksurplusalsorequiredattention,sincesomemunitionshadreachedthe
endoftheirlivesyethadnotbeenproperlyrecycled.Thereportcalledforagen-
eral reflection on ammunition procurement, since the army apparently had
troubleselectingasmallcalibreammunitionmanufactureraswellasmanaging
itsammunitiondepots.The2007parliamentaryreportwaspreoccupiedwith
the disappearance of French industrial savoir-faire in terms of ammunition
making,andclearlystatedthattheFrenchArmyboughtitssmallcalibreammu-
nitionsuppliesfromforeigncompanies(France.Assembléenationale,2007b).A
yearlater,theparliamentaryreportonthe2009defencebudgetallocationplan
statedthatFrancehad2,400soldierspostedinAfghanistan,two-thirdsofwhom
weregroundtroopswithfieldcombatcapacity.Additionalequipmentalloca-
tionofEUR9 million(USD13.23million)wasdistributedin2008,including900
tonsofammunition(specificsandcalibreswerenotstatedinthereport),which
equalledroughlyhalfatonofammunitionpersoldierinthefield.Ammunition
prioritywasthusgiventotroopsstationedinAfghanistan,therebydepleting
theammunitionstocks inFranceandforcingFrenchregimentstouse lower-
qualityammunitionforshootingpractice(France.Assembléenationale,2008a).
Table 3.3Average army procurement
9 mm 5.56 mm 7.62 mm Mortar shells, 81 mm
Infantry rockets, AT4CS
Medium calibre: 20, 25, and 30 mm
Average amount purchased annually
6 million 50 million 6 million 20,000 3,000 25,000
Cost (EUR million)
1.5 15.0 3.0 8.0 6.0 No data
Source: Figures provided by DGA
100 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 101
Thegovernmentalsoplannedto allocateEUR61.7 million(USD90.7mil-
lion),labelledaspaymentcredit,toammunitionprocurementin2009(France.
Assemblée nationale, 2008a). According to the parliamentary report, this
wouldbejustenoughtocoverstandardoperationalneeds,butwouldprove
inadequate to anticipate stock/surplus evolution, as well as an immediate,
emergencyprocurementrequirement.If,forinstance,thearmyweretodeploy
the30,000 troops requiredby itsoriginaloperational contract, theexisting
army stocks would prove largely insufficient to provide all of them with
properammunitionlevels.Thisseemstobearecurrentthemeinparliamen-
taryreports,whichstate thatFrancereliesonforeign-basedcompaniesfor
ammunitionprocurement.This,ofcourse,createsaformofdependenceon
theseforeignmanufacturingcompaniesthatisincompatiblewiththeprinci-
pleofanautonomous,self-reliantnationaldefencecapacity.Moredisturbing
isthefactthatthesubjectofammunitionavailabilitylacksthealluretobe
properlydiscussedinparliamentarydebates.Insomesessionsthesubjectis
seeminglyomittedandtheministerofdefencesimplyskipsoverthesubject
(France.Assembléenationale,2008b).
According toDGA,about50million5.56mmNATOcartridgesareor-
deredeachyearforthethreeservicescombined—army,airforce,andnavy—
with the army being, of course, the main recipient. The average purchase
priceisEUR250–300(USD341–409)per1,000cartridges.Smallcalibream-
munitionexpenditureandbudgetsareontheincreaseannually,withanaver-
ageannualspendingofEUR20–30million(USD27.3–40.9).10Theauthorre-
questedaclearedcopyofthebusinesscontractbetweenDGAandArmyStaff
Headquarters,withoutsuccess.
Ammunitionisconsideredaconvenientadjustablevariantforthedefence
budget,becausecutsorincreasescanbeimplementedquicklywithouttedi-
ouspreliminaryallocationplanning.Furthermore,ammunitionmanagement
is,surprisingly,notgivenhighprioritywithinthearmedforces.Oneinterest-
ingavenueofresearchiswhetherornottheincreaseinammunitionbudgets
reportedbyDGAcouldalsobepartlyattributedtoanewshootingpractice
doctrinecalledIST-Corinstruction sur le tir de combat,modelledaftertheUS
andIsraeliarmies,whichissupposedtosimulate/duplicatecombatshooting
ascloselyaspossibleandthushandovertheoverallresponsibilityofthedrill
totheshooterhimself.Severalunofficialforumsdeclare,however,thatthis
policyhasloosenedcontrolovertheuseofammunitionbyarmypersonnel
andthatitisoftenveryeasytoobtainlive,unaccounted-forammunitionin
anarmyregiment(deGranvil,2008).
Estimated combined annual purchase figures for 2009
Table3.4compilestheannualpurchaseestimatesprovidedbythethreead-
ministrationsforthemainammunitioncategoriesfor2009.Again,thepolice
figuresshownaboveshowmajoryear-to-yeardiscrepanciesinthepurchase
amountsandaccountforvariousammunitionprocurementadaptationsand
alterations.Purchaseamountsforthegendarmerieandthearmyshouldalso
beexpectedtodiffersubstantiallyfromyeartoyear.
Table 3.4French defence and security forces allocation, 2009
9 mm 5.56 mm 7.62 mm Mortar shells 50–120 mm
rockets <120mm
Medium calibre for heavy ma-chine guns, anti-materiel, and anti-personnel
Annual gendarmerie purchase
10 million
800,000 220,000 N/A N/A N/A
Annual police pur-chase
26.54 million
660,000 ? N/A N/A N/A
Annual Ministry of Defence purchase
6 million 50 million
6 million 20,000 3,000 25,000 (medium cal.)
Total amount purchased annually
42.54 million
51.46 million
6.22 million
20,000 3,000 25,000 (medium cal.)
102 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 103
Commercial exports and transfers of ammunition
Armssalesaregenerallyagoodindicatorofanycountry’sgeopoliticalandoil
interests.InAfrica,forinstance,Chadrecentlyjoinedthelistofcountriesbuying
Frenchweapons,joiningahostofotheroil-producingcountriessuchasAngola
andNigeria(France.MinistèredelaDéfense,2007b;2008).Itisreasonableto
believethatammunitiontransfersfollowthistrend.AnOctober2006GRIPre-
portestimatesthatmorethan90percent(USD26.4million)ofalldeclaredsmall
armsandlightweaponsammunitionimportstoAfricanstatesoriginatefrom
non-Africanstates,withtheUnitedStates,Spain,andFrancefiguringasthetop
threeexportersofdeclaredammunitiontoAfrica(Anders,2006).
ThecurrentFrencharmsexportprocedureisverymeticulous:severalminis-
triesexamineanorderbeforeitobtainsthegreenlight.Inordertoboostarms
exports,administrativecontrolproceduresandintermediariesareundergoing
simplification under the auspices of the Commission interministérielle pour
l’étudedesexportationsdematérieldeguerre.Thus,theFrenchadministration
hasrecentlysoughttostreamlineitsadministrativearmsexportprocedures
toavoidrepetition.Accordingtothereporttoparliamentfor2007(France.
MinistèredelaDéfense,2008,annex7),asaresultofsmootheradministrative
measuresandareductioninproductiondelaysandexportauthorizationpe-
riods, French arms deliveries to sub-SaharanAfrican countries more than
doubledduringthatyear,increasingfromEUR16.5million(USD22.6mil-
lion)toEUR39.8million(USD54.5million).Comparatively,Table4.1inthe
2006GRIPreportestimatesthatFrance’sannualsmallarmsandlightweap-
onsammunitionexportstoAfricaovertheperiod2000–04amountedtoanav-
erageofUSD4million(Anders,2006).
Duetothelackofanadequateresponsefromtheappropriatecontacts,
thisareawas,however,notproperlycoveredbythepresentstudy.Firstofall,
itisdifficulttodetermineexactlywhatkindofammunitionFranceexports,
becausetheFrenchDefenceMinistry’sannualreportstoparliament(France.
Ministèrede laDéfense, 2007b; 2008)donot specifyordisaggregatewhat
equipment falls under the various categories. Telephone interviews with
FrenchCustomsHeadquartersandDélégationauxaffairesstratégiquesdid
notyieldanyconclusivequalitativefiguresonthestateofammunitiontrans-
fersbetweenFranceanditspoliticalpartners.11Accordingtothecustomsoffi-
cial, thistypeofinformationisdetainedbytheDirectiondelaprotectionetde
lasécuritedeladéfense,themilitaryintelligenceservice,andislargelyinac-
cessibletoaforeign-based,civilianresearchproject.
Conclusion
Thischapterservesasapreliminarylookintothepatternsofprocurement
andconsumptionofsmall-andlarge-calibreammunitionbytheFrenchgen-
darmerie,police,andarmedforces. Oneofthemainchallengeswastocome
upwithcontactswithintheFrenchadministrationconcernedwithammuni-
tion procurement on behalf of their own agencies.All sources considered,
data concerning ammunition procurement and allocation proved easier to
collectthanammunitiontransfersdata.Officialopensourcesshowthatsmall
calibremanufacturingisnolongernationalizedandthattheFrenchadminis-
trationresorts to importsand tender invitations tosupply its lawenforce-
mentand armed services.The general impression is that ammunition is a
convenient,easilymodifiablevariableinabudget’sadministrationandthat
thetendencyisrathertotopupexistingammunitionlevelsintimesofemer-
gencyratherthantobuytoomuchandkeepitstoredforprolonged(andcost-
ly)periodsoftime.Inotherwords,thetrendpointstowardsnotenougham-
munitioninthearmedforcesratherthantoomuch.
Theinitialassumptionwasthateachadministrationwaseventuallylikely
to‘signoff’somehardwaretoaformercolony’sarmyorlawenforcement
serviceafteraprolongedperiodofuseinFrance.Whetherlargeamountsof
ammunitionareconcernedintheseamiablecessionsis,however,doubtful:in
thisallegedcontextofdeprivation,theextentofofficial,recordedammuni-
tiontransfersabroadperformedbythelawenforcementandarmedservices
themselvescanbequestioned.Thisshould,ofcourse,beconsideredseparately
fromauthorized,commercialsalesandexportsofmediumandlargecalibre
ammunitionmanufacturedbyFrenchcompanies,whichcouldbethefocusof
analtogetherdifferentstudy.
104 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 105
Endnotes
1WrittencommunictionfromPatriceBouveret,Observatoiredesarmements,Lyon,3June2009.
2AuthorinterviewwithseniorDGAofficial,May2009.
3AuthorinterviewwithseniorDGAofficial,May2009.
4AuthorinterviewwithseniorDGAofficial,May2009
5Authorinterviewwithseniorofficial,DGGN,Bureaudesmatériels,May2009.
6<http://www.boamp.fr>.
7<http://www.eda.europa.eu/ebbweb/Default.aspx>.
8AuthorinterviewwithcommandingofficerofEquipmentProcurementDivision,DGGN,
Bureaudesmatériels,Malakoff,15May2009.
9AuthorinterviewwithheadofBureaudel’armementetdesmatérielstechniques,DAPN,
12June2009.
10Authorinterviewwithinfantryweaponsandammunitionmanager,DGA,Bagneux,15May2009.
11AuthortelephoneinterviewswithseniorofficialsofBureauE2,Directiongénéraledes
douanes,andDélégationauxaffairesstratégiques,MayandJuly2009,respectively.
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relatif à la programmation militaire pour les années 2009 à 2014.Paris:Assembléenationale.<http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/13/cr-cdef/08-09/c0809025.asp>
——.2009c.Commission de la défense nationale et des forces armées—compte rendu n° 27 audition de
M. Antoine Gendry, président-directeur général de la SNPE, dans le cadre du projet de loi (n° 1216)
relatif à la programmation militaire pour les années 2009 à 2014.Paris:Assembléenationale.<http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/13/cr-cdef/08-09/c0809027.asp>
——.2009d.Commission de la défense nationale et des forces armées—compte rendu n° 41—suite de
l’examen du projet de loi (n° 1216) relatif à la programmation militaire pour les années 2009 à 2014
(examen des articles).Paris:Assembléenationale.<http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/13/cr-cdef/08-09/c0809041.asp>
——.2009e.Projet de loi relatif à la programmation militaire pour les années 2009 à 2014 et portant
diverses dispositions concernant la défense.Paris:Assembléenationale.<http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/13/rapports/r1615-a0.asp>
France.MinistèredelaDéfense.2007a.Instruction N°1217/DEF/EMA/SLI fixant les attributions, la
composition et le fonctionnement de la commission interarmées des munitions.Paris:Etat-majordesarmées.
<http://www.boc.sga.defense.gouv.fr/pdf/2007/2007_018_p_defe0751030j_32596.pdf>——.2007b.Rapport au parlement sur les exportations d’armes de la France en 2006.Paris:Ministèrede
laDéfense. <http://www.defense.gouv.fr/defense/enjeux_defense/defense_au_parlement/
rapports_d_activite/rapport_au_parlement_sur_les_exportations_d_armement_2006>
106 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 107
——.2008.Rapport au parlement sur les exportations d’armes de la France en 2007.Paris:MinistèredelaDéfense.
<http://www.defense.gouv.fr/defense/enjeux_defense/defense_au_parlement/rapports_d_activite/rapport_au_parlement_sur_les_exportations_d_armement_2007>
——.2009.Rapport au parlement sur les exportations d’armes de la France en 2008.Paris:MinistèredelaDéfense.
<http://www.defense.gouv.fr/defense/enjeux_defense/defense_au_parlement/rapports_d_activite/rapport_au_parlement_sur_les_exportations_d_armement_2008>
Jane’sInformationGroup.2009.‘MergersandAcquisitions.’Jane’s Industry Quarterly.28April.AccessedfromJane’swebsite,August2009.<http://www4.janes.com/subscribe/jdw/doc_view.jsp?K2DocKey=/content1/janesdata/binder/jiq/jiq0004.htm@current&Prod_Name=JIQ&QueryText=>
SIGSauer.2008.Companywebsite.<http://www.sigsauer.de/index.php?id=614&lang=en>
Chapter 4 Russian Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition Production, Procurement, and ExportsMaxim Pyadushkin
Introduction
TheRussianFederationhassignificantcapacitiesforproducingsmallarms
and lightweaponsammunition,whichwere inherited fromtheSovietde-
fenceindustry.Althoughinthe1990sandearly2000sthissectorfacedserious
reductionsindomesticprocurementorders,theammunitionindustryisstill
capableofsatisfyingthedemandforsmallarmsandlightweaponsammuni-
tion from the national armed forces and paramilitary agencies. Moreover,
overthepastdecadeRussianmanufacturersincreasedtheoutputofcivilian
firearmsammunitionsoldbothonthedomesticmarketandforexport,and
thisareabecamethemajorsourceofrevenuesfortheindustry.Inthelastfew
yearsthesmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionindustrysawtheriseof
domesticmilitarypurchasesduetotheoverallgrowthoftheRussianmilitary
procurementbudget.
Nevertheless,theanalysisofsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunition
production,procurement,andexportsintheRussianFederationisaverydif-
ficulttaskduetothelackofinformationavailablefromgovernmentbodies,
manufacturers,andmedia.Thiscanbeexplainedbothbysecurityrestrictions
andbythefactthattheammunitionindustryrepresentsaratherinsignificant
shareinthecountry’slargedefenceindustry.
Methodology and sources
Estimatingthetotalproduction,procurement,andexportofammunitionfor
smallarmsandlightweaponsintheRussianFederationisdifficultduetothe
108 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 109
lackofdetailedinformationonthesubject.Theinformationontheproduc-
tion,domesticprocurement,andexportofsuchammunitioniskeptclassified
undernationallegislation.The1993FederalLawonStateSecretsstatesthat
statesecretsincludeinformationregardingvolumesofdomesticdefencepro-
curementplans,volumesofproductionanddeliveries(inbothnumbersand
values)ofweaponsandotherdefenceproducts,defenceproductioncapaci-
ties,designersandmanufacturersofweaponsandothermilitaryproducts,
andtheircooperationties(RussianFederation,1993).Thelawdoes,however,
allowgovernmentofficialstodeclassifythisinformationduetotheinterna-
tionalobligationsoninformationexchangeacceptedbytheRussianFedera-
tionorifthefurtherprotectionofthisinformationbecomesunreasonable.
Buttheopportunityfordeclassificationdoesnotalwaysmeanthatinfor-
mationbecomesavailableinsidethecountry.AgoodexampleistheRussian
Federation’sparticipationintheinformationexchangeundertheOrganiza-
tion for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Document on Small
ArmsandLightWeapons.In2001theRussiangovernmentallowedtheFor-
eignMinistryannuallytocollectandsendtotheOSCEtheinformationabout
thenumbersofexported,imported,seized,anddisposedofsmallarmsand
lightweapons,butwiththeconditionthatthisdatashouldremainclassified
insidethecountry(RussianFederation,2001).
OtherRussianreportsunderinternationalobligationslikeUnitedNations
RegisterofConventionalArms(UNROCA)reportsorUNreportsonmilitary
expendituresdonotprovidetheneededinformationonsmallarmsandlight
weaponsprocurementorexportsand thuswerenotused in this research.
Russian reports to UNROCA (including background information) do not
containanydataaboutsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionthatwas
thesubjectofthisresearch.Reportsonmilitaryexpenditurescontaininforma-
tionregardingtheprocurementofammunition,buttheydonotseparatelarge
calibreammunitionfromthatforsmallarmsandlightweapons,sotheycannot
beusedtoestimatethevolumeordynamicsoftheRussiaFederation’ssmall
armsandlightweaponsammunitionprocurement.
Public controloverdefence issues ingeneral and small armsand light
weapons issues in particular is very limited in the Russian Federation. It
includessporadicreportingbytheDefenceMinistryorotherrelatedofficesto
closedsessionsoftheStateDuma.Thesereportsalsoremainunavailableout-
sideparliament,andNGOsareexcludedfromthisprocess.
Sotheavailabledataonsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitioninthe
RussianFederationismadeupoftinypiecesofdeclassifiedinformationcol-
lectedfromvarioussources.Forthepurposesoftheresearch,thisinformation
was collected from three types of sources: government bodies and agencies,
smallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionmanufacturers,andthemedia.
Asfarasthegovernmentisconcerned,thesmallarmsandlightweapons
ammunitionindustry(aspartofthedefenceindustry)issupervisedbytheMin-
istryofIndustryandTrade.Theministrydoesnotprovidedetailedstatisticson
ammunitionproductionintheRussianFederation,includingammunitionfor
smallarmsandlightweapons.Arequestthatitprovidestatisticsforlightweap-
onsammunitionproductionfor2008receivednoresponse.
Anotherrequestforlightweaponsammunitionexportdatawasforwarded
toRosoboronexport,thecountry’sstate-ownedarmstradeagency,whichholdsa
monopolyrighttoselldomesticallyproduceddefenceproductsabroad.Rosobo-
ronexportprovidedaspeciallypreparedinformationsheetonitslightweapons
ammunitionexportthatisratherdescriptive,butcontainsnoexactfiguresofto-
talexportvolumesorvolumesofdeliveriestocertainclients.Someofthedatain
thisstudywasobtainedthroughinterviewswithRosoboronexportofficials.
Thereportsbysmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionmanufacturers
weremoreuseful,althoughstill limited,sourcesof information.The levelof
corporateinformationdisclosureintheRussianFederationdirectlydependson
thelegalstatusofacompany.Themanufacturersthatactasopen jointstock
companiesareobligedtodisclosepubliclytheirfinancialandoperationalre-
sultsthroughquarterlyandannualreports.Butthenumberofopenjointstock
companiesinthecountry’ssmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionindustry
isdecreasing,thusaffecting,unfortunately,thescopeofavailabledata.In2002
thesmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionindustrynumberedfourpublic
companiesoutofnine,whilein2010therewereonlytwo:TulaCartridgeWorks
and UlyanovskAmmunition Plant. Moreover, although the reports by these
two companies are available on the Internet, Tula Cartridge Works does not
110 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 111
discloseitsexportrevenuesinitsreports,referringbywayofexplanationtothe
1993FederalLawonStateSecrets(TulaCartridgeWorks,2009a).
Theothersmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionmanufacturershave
thelegalstatusofeitherclosedcorporations(BarnaulAmmunitionPlant,Nov-
osibirsk Cartridge Plant, and Klimovsk Specialized Ammunition Plant) or
state-ownedenterprises(VympelAmmunitionPlant,GNPPBazalt,FNPTsPri-
bor,andKBPInstrumentDesignBureau).Theselegalstatusesdonotrequire
thedisclosureofcorporateinformation,thusthesecompaniesdonotpublish
regularreportsontheirfinancialandoperationalactivities.Onrequest,Bazalt
providedsomeinformationonthelightweaponsammunitionitmanufactures
andexports,butagainwithnoexactfiguresonproductionorexportvolumes.
Theshortageofofficialdatafromgovernmentbodiesandtheindustrywas
partlycompensatedforbytheinformationavailablefromlocalmedia.Neverthe-
less,thisinformationwasquitelimitedandincludedirregularannouncements
ofoperationalorfinancialachievementsandexportsuccesses.Thisshowsthat
thesmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionindustryremainsclosed,whileits
achievementsdonotattractmediaattentionbecausetheindustryplaysacom-
parativelyinsignificantroleinthecountry’soveralldefenceproduction.
Products and producers
Themanufacturingofsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionisapartof
theammunitionbranchof theRussianFederation’sdefence industry.This
sectorincludessixcompaniesthatproduceammunitionforsmallarms:Bar-
naulAmmunitionPlant (a subsidiaryofBarnaulMachine-ToolPlant),Kli-
movsk Specialized Ammunition Plant, Novosibirsk Cartridge Plant, Tula
Cartridge Works, Ulyanovsk Ammunition Plant; and the Amursk-based
VympelAmmunitionPlant;andthreelightweaponsammunitionmanufac-
turers:theMoscow-basedGNPPBazaltandFNPTsPribor,andtheTula-based
KBPInstrumentDesignBureau.Allofthesesmallarmsammunitionmanu-
facturersexceptVympelareprivatelyownedcompanies.Vympelandallthe
lightweaponsammunitionmanufacturersarestateowned.
Russianmanufacturersproducetheentirerangeofammunitionforthedo-
mesticallydesignedsmallarmsusedbythecountry’sarmedforcesandpara-
militaryagencies(seeTable4.1).Mostcompanies,exceptNovosibirskandKli-
movsk,produceammunitionofsuchpopularcalibresasthe5.45x39mmand
7.62x39mmroundsusedinKalashnikovassaultrifles.TheKlimovskplantis
focusedonspecialsubsonic9mmand7.62mmammunitionforsilentweapons,
whileUlyanovskandNovosibirskplantsproduceammunitionforlargecalibre
(12.7mmand14.5mm)machinegunsandanti-materielrifles.
Russianlightweaponsammunitionmanufacturersproduceammunition
for hand-held under-barrel and mounted grenade launchers, portable
launchersofanti-tankmissileandrocketsystems,andmortarsofcalibresof
lessthan100mm.
TheMoscow-basedGNPPBazaltisadesignerandexclusivemanufactur-
er of various ammunition for RPG-7 and RPG-29 grenade launchers, i.e.
shapedcharge,high-explosive,anti-tank,andthermobaricgrenaderounds.
Additionally,thecompanymanufacturers82mmmortarrounds;disposable
72.5mmRPG-26,105mmRPG-27,105mmRShG-1,and72.5mmRShG-2
anti-tank rocket launchers; 30 mm non-cartridge rounds for AGS-17 and
AGS-30automaticgrenadelaunchers;andhandgrenades.1
Table 4.1Military small arms ammunition produced by Russian manufacturers
Company Military small arms ammunition produced, by calibre
Barnaul Ammunition Plant 9 x 18 mm, 9 x 19 mm, 5.45 x 39 mm, 5.56 x 45 mm, 7.62 x 39 mm, 7.62 x 51 mm, 7.62 x 54 mm
Klimovsk Specialized Ammunition Plant
Special pistol 9 and 7.62 mm, special rifle 9 x 39mm, 5.66 mm for underwater weapons, 7.62 x 39mm
Novosibirsk Cartridge Plant 9 x 17 mm, 9 x 18 mm, 9 x 19 mm, 7.62 x 54 mm, 12.7 mm
Tula Cartridge Works 5.45 x 18 mm, 9 x 17 mm, 9 x 18 mm, 9 x 19 mm, .40 SW, .45 Auto, 5.45 x 39 mm, 7.62 x 39 mm, 7.62 x 54 mm
Ulyanovsk Ammunition Plant 5.45 x 39 mm, 7.62 x 39 mm, 12.7 mm, 14.5 mm
Vympel Ammunition Plant 9 x 19 mm, 5.45 x 39 mm, 5.56 x 45 mm, 7.62 x 39 mm
Source: Barnaul Machine-Tool Plant (n.d.); Klimovsk Specialized Ammunition Plant (n.d.); Novosibirsk Cartridge
Plant (n.d.); Tula Cartridge Works (n.d.); Ulyanovsk Ammunition Plant (2007; 2009); Vympel Ammunition Plant (n.d.)
112 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 113
TwootherRussianlightweaponsammunitionmanufacturers—Priborand
KBP—donothavesuchavastrangeoflightweaponsammunitionproductsas
Bazalt,asthistypeofammunitionrepresentsasmallportionoftheirbusiness
revenues. For example, the main specialization of the Moscow-based FNPTs
Priboristhedevelopmentandproductionofsmallcalibreartilleryrounds.Nev-
ertheless,thecompanyproduces40mmcaselessroundsforthearmedforces’
under-barrelgrenadelaunchersandammunitionfor30mmautomaticgrenade
launchers;and isnowmarketing,mainly forexport,anewmodelof40mm
roundsfortheBalkanautomaticgrenadelauncher(ARMS-TASS,2009).
TheTula-basedKBPInstrumentDesignBureaualsoproducesanumbera
portableandunder-barrelgrenadelaunchers,amongotherweaponry.Some
ofKBP’sgrenadelaunchersuseammunitionproducedbyBazaltandPribor,
butsomemodelssuchastheGM-94grenadelauncherarecompatiblewith43
mmroundsofKBP’sowndesign.2
Production, domestic procurement, and exports
Similar to thedefence industry ingeneral, ammunitionproduction faceda
lackofdomesticprocurementordersduring the1990sand themostof the
2000sandhadtosurvivethroughexports.In1991,attheendoftheSovietera,
theindustryproducedannuallyfivebillionsmallarmscartridges,butdueto
thesharpdecreaseinRussiandefenceexpenditureinthe1990s,by2000the
annual production volume had shrunk to 50 million rounds (INFO-TASS,
2001).By2000thelevelofdomesticcombatsmallarmsandlightweaponsam-
munitionprocurementhaddecreasedby40times,withmanufacturingfacili-
tiesworkingatonly10percentoftheircapacities(ARMS-TASS,2007).This
situationforcedammunitionplantstoproducehuntingandsportingammu-
nition,whichbecametheirmainsourceofrevenuesintheearly2000s.
Domesticprocurementoflightweaponsammunitionalsofellsharplyin
the1990sandearly2000s,forcingtheindustryalmosttosuspendproduction.
But increaseddomesticdefenceexpenditures in the secondhalfof the2000s
gavethemanufacturersnewordersfromthenationalarmedforces.
Small arms ammunition production, procurement, and exportsUnfortunately,thereisnocompletedatasetavailableonsmallarmsmanufac-
turingandexportfor2004–08.Onlyfourcompanies—Ulyanovsk,Novosibirsk,
Tula,andBarnaul—reportproductionandexportvolumesthroughcorporate
reportsormedia.Klimovskrevealedinformationonlyfor2005,whileVympel
doesnotprovideanyinformationaboutitsfinancialoroperationsresults.For
2005Novosibirskreportedthequantitiesofsmallarmsammunitionmanufac-
turedandexportedasopposedtovalues:30millioncartridgesand6million
cartridges,respectively(Voenno-promyshlenny kurier,2006).
Nevertheless,theavailableinformationshowsanincreaseinsmallarmsam-
munitionproductionintheRussianFederationfortheperiod2004–08fromUSD
42.7milliontoUSD151.6million(seeTable4.2).Growingexportsanddomestic
procurementofbothcivilianandmilitaryammunitionapparentlycausedthis
increase.Availablefigures representboth typesofammunitionoutput,as the
manufacturersusuallydonotprovideabreakdownthatdistinguishesbetween
theseproducts.Mostcompanies,however,reportthathuntingandsportingam-
munitionaccountsforthelargestpartoftheirtotalammunitionproduction.
TulaCartridgeWorksbecamethelargestmanufacturer,withitstotalout-
putincreasingfromUSD34.9millionin2004toUSD91millionin2008.Its
domestic sales, which included both military and civilian ammunition,
amountedtoUSD17.6millionin2004(TulaCartridgeWorks,2005)andabout
USD29millionin2006(ARMS-TASS,2007).
UlyanovskAmmunitionPlantdemonstratedthesharpestincreaseinpro-
duction.After theplantwasreorganized in2004andboughtbyTulaCar-
tridgeWorks,itsproductionoutputskyrocketedfromUSD3.2millionin2005
toUSD43.7millionin2008.Ulyanovskconfirmedanincrease indomestic
ammunitionsalesinthelastfewyears(USD4.8millionin2006,USD8.3mil-
lionin2007,andUSD22.1millionin2008).
AsforBarnaul,itsdomesticsalesalsogrewfromUSD5.4millionin2004
toUSD18.4in2007(seeTable4.2).Theplantreportedlyhaddomesticorders
formilitaryammunition(ARMS-TASS,2007).
Amongallthemanufacturers,onlyVympelreportedlyremainsinadiffi-
cultfinancial situationdue to the lackofbothdomesticandexportorders
(ARMS-TASS,2007).
114 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 115
Tabl
e 4.
2R
uss
ian
sm
all
arm
s am
mu
nit
ion
pro
du
ctio
n a
nd
exp
ort
s, 2
004–
08 (
USD
mil
lio
n u
nle
ss o
ther
wis
e
ind
icat
ed)
Man
ufac
ture
r20
0420
0520
0620
0720
08
Tota
l re
venu
esEx
port
s To
tal r
even
ues
Expo
rts
Tota
l re
venu
esEx
port
s To
tal
reve
nues
Expo
rts
Tota
l re
venu
esEx
port
s
Vym
pel A
mm
uniti
on
Plan
tN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
ta
Uly
anov
sk
Am
mun
ition
Pla
nt
No
data
No
data
3.2a
No
data
18.6
b12
.8c
34.6
d26
.3e
43.7
d21
.6e
Nov
osib
irsk
C
artr
idge
Pla
nt
No
data
No
data
No
valu
e gi
ven;
30
mill
ion
cart
ridg
esf
No
valu
e gi
ven;
6
mill
ion
cart
ridg
esg
15.6
hN
o da
ta23
.0h
No
data
16.9
iN
o da
ta
Tula
Car
trid
ge W
orks
34
.9
9.1j
52.9
kN
o da
ta59
.4k
Abo
ut 3
0.0l
81.9
mN
o da
ta91
.0m
No
data
Bar
naul
Am
mun
ition
Pl
ant
7.8n
2.4o
1.1n
0.2o
19.2
p4.
4q 27
.4q
9.0q
No
data
13.9
r
Klim
ovsk
Spe
cial
-iz
ed A
mm
uniti
on
Plan
t
No
data
No
data
16.0
s15
.4s
No
data
No
data
No
data
No
data
No
data
No
data
Tota
l ava
ilabl
e 42
.7
11.5
73
.2
15.6
11
2.8
Abo
ut 4
7.2
166.
9 35
.3
151.
6 35
.5
Not
es:
a Uly
anov
sk A
mm
uniti
on P
lant
(200
6)b T
otal
rev
enue
s fr
om a
mm
uniti
on s
ales
(Uly
anov
sk A
mm
uniti
on P
lant
, 200
7)c U
lyan
ovsk
Am
mun
ition
Pla
nt (2
007)
d Tot
al r
even
ues
from
am
mun
ition
sal
es (U
lyan
ovsk
Am
mun
ition
Pla
nt, 2
009)
e Cal
cula
ted
as a
per
cent
age
of to
tal p
rodu
ctio
n vo
lum
e th
at m
ay in
clud
e ex
port
ed p
rodu
cts
othe
r th
an a
mm
uniti
on (U
lyan
ovsk
Am
mun
ition
Pla
nt, 2
009)
f Voe
nno-
prom
yshl
enny
kur
ier
(200
6)g 2
0% o
f tot
al p
rodu
ctio
n; s
ee V
oenn
o-pr
omys
hlen
ny k
urie
r (2
006)
h Ex
pert
Sib
ir (2
008)
i Fom
ina
(200
9)j T
his
figur
e is
onl
y fo
r ex
port
s of
mili
tary
am
mun
ition
(Tul
a C
artr
idge
Wor
ks, 2
005)
k Tul
a C
artr
idge
Wor
ks (2
007)
l Mor
e th
an 5
0% o
f tot
al r
even
ues;
see
AR
MS-
TASS
(200
7)m T
ula
Car
trid
ge W
orks
(200
9)n T
otal
am
mun
ition
rev
enue
(Bar
naul
Mac
hine
-Too
l Pla
nt, 2
006)
o B
arna
ul M
achi
ne-T
ool P
lant
(200
6)p
Expe
rt S
ibir
(200
7)q
Glo
bals
ib.c
om (2
008)
r VIS
-Inf
orm
(200
9)s G
arav
sky
(200
6)
Tabl
e 4.
3R
uss
ian
lig
ht
wea
po
ns
amm
un
itio
n p
rod
uct
ion
an
d e
xpo
rts,
200
6–09
(U
SD m
illi
on
)
Man
ufac
ture
r20
0620
0820
09 (
expe
cted
)
Tota
l rev
enue
sEx
port
sTo
tal r
even
ues
Expo
rts
Tota
l rev
enue
sEx
port
s
GN
PP B
azal
t21
.6
No
data
72.6
14
.5
116.
7 52
.0–5
8.0
KB
PN
o da
taN
o da
ta49
5.3
0N
o da
taN
o da
ta
Prib
orN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
taN
o da
ta
116 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 117
agencies reportedlyhavea limitednumberof foreign-madesmallarms in
service,mainlysniperriflesandhandguns.Itisnotclearwhethertheseunits
importammunition for theseweaponsorbuy it from localmanufacturers
thatcanproduceNATO-typeammunition.Buteveninthecaseofimports,
thesedeliveriesareunlikelytobesignificant,asthenumberofforeignsmall
armsinserviceintheRussianFederationisquitelimited.
An overview of exports
TheexactvolumeofRussiansmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionex-
portsisunavailablebecauseofficialstatisticsdonotseparatetheseproducts
into a separate category. Instead, they are calculated together with other
weapons. Rosoboronexport, the state-owned arms trade monopolist, ac-
countsforbothsmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitioninthecategory
‘other’.In2008thiscategory’sshareinRosoboronexport’stotalarmsexport
was3percent5oraboutUSD200million(Safronov,2009).6Butthiscategory
doesnotreflecttherealvolumeofthesmallarmsandlightweaponsammuni-
tionexportedasitmayincludeotherdefenceequipmentexportedthrough
Rosoboronexportthatdoesnotfallunderthemaincategories(aircraft,naval
weapons,landweapons,etc.).
Rosoboronexporthasannuallyincreasedthevolumeofsmallarmsand
lightweaponsexportdeliveriesby13–15percent(Rosoboronexport,2009).
ThegrowingdemandforRussiansmallarmsandlightweaponsisexplained
bytheirreliability,optimalvalueformoney,andexpandedproductrange,includ-
ingnewammunitionandammunitionadaptedtoNATOstandards.
RosoboronexportdoesnotspecifywhatkindofNATOstandardammuni-
tionitexports,butitprobablyincludesammunitionforNATO-calibrederiva-
tivesofKalashnikovAKrifles.FormerWarsawPactcountriesinEasternEu-
rope produce such weapons. The Russian Federation’s largest small arms
manufacturer,Izhmash,alsooffers5.56mmAK-101andAK-102assaultrifles,
basedontheAK-74design.Atleastoneammunitioncompany—BarnaulAm-
munitionPlant—sellsNATOstandard5.56x45mmand7.62x51mmammu-
nition(Globalsib.com,2008).
Light weapons ammunition production and exportsNoneofthethreelightweaponsammunitionmanufacturerspubliclyreports
itsfinancialoroperationsresultsintermsofeithervolumeorvalueofoutput.
Amongthethree,Bazaltseemstobethedominantmanufacturerduetoits
narrowlightweaponsammunitionspecialization.Ithasreportedlyincreased
itsrevenuesinthelastfewyears:fromRUB565million(USD21.6million)in
2006(Kommersant,2008)toRUB2.2billion(USD72.6million)in2008.Reve-
nuesfor2009areexpectedtoreachRUB3.5billion(USD116.7million)(Myas-
nikov,2009).ItcanbeassumedthatmostofBazalt’srevenuescomefromlight
weaponsammunition,althoughthecompanyproducessomeotherdefence
productssuchasaerialbombs,artilleryand120mmmortarrounds,andam-
munitionforanti-aircraftgunsandgrenadelaunchers.
Suchgrowthisreportedlycausedbytheincreaseinprocurementbythe
DefenceMinistryandlawenforcementagenciesaspartoftheoverallincrease
intheRussianFederation’sdefenceexpenditureinthe2000s.In2008domes-
ticordersamountedto80percentofBazalt’srevenues,RUB1.76billion(USD
58.1million).However,thevolumeofdomesticdefenceordershasbeenvery
unstableoverthelastfewyears(Korenkov,2008).
KBPandPriborarelikelytomanufacturelightweaponsammunitionin
muchsmallervolumes.KBP’stotalrevenuesin2008amountedtoRUB15bil-
lion(USD495.3million),3butthemajorportionisgeneratedbysalesoflarger
weapons,suchasairdefencesystemsandanti-tankguidedmissiles.Inthe
lightweaponsammunitionclassKPBreportedlyproducesonlythe43mm
roundtosupportseveralhundredGM-94grenadelauncherspurchasedan-
nuallyfortheRussianFederation’ssecurityandlawenforcementagencies.4
OfficialdataonPribor’sproductionvolumes,domesticprocurement,and
exportsisunavailable.
TheRussianFederationdoesnotimportammunitionforlightweapons
as:(1)ithasnoforeign-madelightweaponsinserviceinitsarmedforcesand
paramilitaryagencies; and (2) the localdefence industry is still capableof
producingalltypesofammunitionforthelightweaponsusedbythecoun-
try’smilitaryandlawenforcementagencies.Asforsmallarmsammunition,
somespecialtaskunitsoftheMinistryoftheInteriorandotherparamilitary
118 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 119
However,demandforRussiansmallarmsandlightweaponsammuni-
tionisnotcomprehensive,e.g.mortarshellshavenotbeenexportedforsev-
eralyears.7
Interestingly,accordingtoRosoboronexport,intheglobalarmsmarket
theRussianFederationisthesecondlargestexporterofsmallarmsandlight
weaponsammunition, followedby theUnitedStates in thirdplace.This
countersthecurrentassessmentofreportedtransfersintheglobalmarket,
whichhastheUnitedStatesastheleader.RosoboronexportreportsthatChi-
naistheactualgloballeader,exportingammunitiondesignedfromRussian
technologies. Other Chinese advantages that Rosoboronexport’s analysts
nameincludedumping,vastoffsetprogrammes,andarmsimportloans.At
thesametime,Rosoboronexportpointsoutthatsomeothercountriesuse
RussianFederationtechnologiestransferredintheSovieteraforunauthor-
ized manufacturing and export of light weapons ammunition, mainly
rounds for automatic, under-barrel, and anti-tank grenade launchers
(Rosoboronexport,2009).
Theavailabledatafrommanufacturersshowsthatin2004totalexportsof
smallarmsammunition(bothmilitaryandcivilian)amountedtoUSD11.5
million;USD15.6millionin2005;aboutUSD47.2millionin2006;andabout
USD35millioninboth2007and2008.
Someexportstatisticsareavailablefromthemanufacturersthatsellam-
munitiontoforeigncustomersthroughRosoboronexport.ButRussianmanu-
facturersofsmallarmsammunitionusuallyreporttheirtotalexports,which
includebothmilitaryandcivilianammunition.Forexample,thetotalexports
ofTulaCartridgeWorksin2004totalledUSD17.3million,buttheshareof
militaryammunitionintotalexportswasabout50percent(USD9.1million)
(TulaCartridgeWorks,2005).
In2008Bazaltexportdeliveriesamountedtoonly20percentofitsreve-
nues (RIA Novosti, 2008)and totalledUSD14.5million. In2009 theexport
shareof totalproduction increased to45–50per centandwasexpected to
reachthelevelofUSD52–58million.KBPdidnotexportlightweaponsam-
munition, but instead focused on deliveries to domestic customers, while
dataonPribor’sexportsisunavailable.
AccordingtoRosoboronexport,theMiddleEastistheleadingregionim-
portingRussianlightweaponsammunition,followedbytheCaribbean,East
Asia,andAfrica.Somedemandforlightweaponsammunitionremainsfrom
theformerWarsawPactstateswhostilluseSoviet-madelightweapons.In
addition,WesternEuropeancountriesandtheUnitedStatespurchasesmall
batchesofRussianlightweaponsammunitioninordertostudyitscombat
performance(Rosoboronexport,2009).
ThisexportgeographyisconfirmedbyBazalt’sexperience.Accordingto
the company, it has supplied grenade launchers and their ammunition to
Algeria, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, China, Finland, Jordan, India, Iran, Libya,
Malaysia,Mexico,NorthKorea,Syria,Sudan,Turkey,Turkmenistan,Vene-
zuela, the UnitedArab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, andYemen.8 Since
2005Bazalthasbeendeveloping theRPG-32Hashimdual-calibregrenade
launcher, which is to be assembled under licence in Jordan. The assembly
facilitywasexpectedtobelaunchedattheendof2009.
TheRussianFederation’ssmallarmsammunitionmanufacturersdonot
reportwheretheysellmilitarysmallarmsandlightweaponsammunition,as
allexportsgothroughRosoboronexport.Perhapsthelargestknownexport
deal in recent times involving the country’s military small arms and light
weaponsammunitionwaswithVenezuela,whichpurchased100,000AK-103
assaultriflesandreceivedalicencetoproduceitsammunitionlocally(Nikol-
skyandKudashkina,2006).Thepurchaseoftheseweaponswassupplemented
byacontractforthedeliveryof72million7.62x39mmcartridgesvaluedat
USD 58 million reportedly concluded in 2006. The ammunition was to be
manufactured by Barnaul Ammunition Plant (Agentstvo Natzionalnikh
Novostey,2006).Accordingtootherreports,severalmillioncartridgeswere
also purchased from Klimovsk Specialized Ammunition Plant (Litovkin,
2006).TheRussianFederationalsoagreedtobuildafacilityinVenezuelaforthe
licensed production of 7.62 mm ammunition for Kalashnikov AK-103 rifles
(Kolesnikov,2006).Asforexportsofcivilianammunition,themajormarketsare
theUnitedStates,Europe,andtheMiddleEast(ARMS-TASS,2007).
120 Small Arms Survey Working Paper 10 King European Small Arms and Light Weapons Ammunition 121
Conclusion
ThelackofcompleteanddetailedstatisticsonRussiansmallarmsandlight
weaponsammunitionproductionandsalesmakesitdifficulttoproduceac-
curateestimations.Notallofthemanufacturersreporttheirfinancialandop-
erationalresults,butthosethatdo,dososporadically.Besides,asmentioned
above,theavailabledatafromsmallarmsammunitionmanufacturersdoes
notdisaggregatemilitaryandcivilianammunition,whichmakesanyestima-
tionevenlessaccurate.Nevertheless,thetotalavailabledatacanbeusedas
anestimationforminimallypossiblelevelsofsmallarmsammunitionpro-
duction,export,anddomesticprocurement.
Asforlightweaponsammunitionproduction,Bazalt’sdatacanbetaken
asabasisfortheestimationsoflightweaponsammunitionproduction,do-
mesticprocurement,andexports,asthiscompanyseemstobethelargestand
mostspecializedmanufacturerinthefield.Itisclearthatlightweaponsam-
munitionconstitutesa tinyportionofKBPrevenues,while itsoutputsare
muchsmallerintermsofvolumeandvaluethanBazalt’s.Thelackofinfor-
mationfromPriborprobablyindicatesthatitsoutputsareverymodest.
Sowecanassumethatannuallightweaponsammunitionproductionvol-
umesaremoreorlessequaltoBazalt’sannualoutput,i.e.betweenUSD20
millionandUSD117millionin2006–09.Asforlightweaponsammunition
procurementfortheRussianarmedforcesandsecurityandlawenforcement
agencies,itcanbeassumedthatitalsoroughlyequalsBazalt’sdomesticor-
ders,whichamountedtoUSD58.1millionin2008.
Byaddinguptheavailableexportvaluesfor2008,i.e.smallarmsammu-
nition(USD35million)andlightweaponsammunition(Bazalt’sUSD14.5
million),wegetUSD49.5million.Thistotalfitswellwithintherangeofthe
USD200millionvalueofRosoboronexport’s‘other’categoryfordefenceex-
ports.ThisfigureofUSD49.5millionreflectstheminimallypossiblelevelof
theRussianFederation’ssmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionexports,
asitdoesnotincludetheproductionofthosemanufacturersthatdidnotre-
portexportsin2008.WhilethefigureofUSD200millionisnotveryprecise,
andmayincludedefenceproductsotherthanammunition,itisnevertheless
thebestoneavailableandcanbetakenasthemaximumpossiblelevelofthe
country’ssmallarmsandlightweaponsammunitionexportsin2008.
Endnotes
1 AuthoremailinterviewwithGNPPBazaltrepresentative,Moscow,October2009.
2 AuthorinterviewwithKBPrepresentatives,Moscow,27October2009.
3 EstimationsbyCentreforAnalysisofStrategiesandTechnologiesrepresentativeinauthor
interview,Moscow,October2009.
4 AuthorinterviewwithKBPrepresentatives,Moscow,27October2009.
5 AuthorinterviewwithRosoboronexportrepresentative,October2009.
6 Rosoboronexport’sarmsexportstotalledUSD6.75billionin2008;seeSafronov(2009).
7 AuthorinterviewwithRosoboronexportrepresentative,October2009.
8 AuthoremailinterviewwithGNPPBazaltrepresentative,Moscow,October2009.
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