The Baltic subsidiary of a Turkish company is to build a €300 million ammunition factory in Kiviõli, a town in northern Estonia, that will start producing 155-millimetre artillery ammunition.
ARCA Baltics Operations, a subsidiary of a Turkish ammo and weapons systems company, is planning to start production in 2028 and says it’ll create up to 1,000 jobs at the North Kiviõli defence industry park, the location of the planned ammo factory.
In addition to the 155-mm artillery ammunition, the company will also manufacture mortar ammunition of various calibres and 122-mm rockets.
The Estonian company ARCA Baltics Operations is affiliated with the Turkish defence industry group ARCA Defense, which recorded export volumes exceeding €3 billion last year. The group operates nine factories and employs approximately 5,000 people, with activities spanning not only defence and aviation but also the energy and construction sectors.
Four defence companies selected for another defence park
Under the agreement, the Estonian state will grant the company use of a 141-hectare (348-acre) site at the North Kiviõli defence industry park and will invest up to €10 million in access roads, fencing and the establishment of necessary electricity, natural gas and water connections.
The parties are cooperating to ensure that ammunition production can begin in 2028.
To identify companies that will operate in Estonia’s defence industry parks, the Estonian Centre for Defence Investments launched a selection tender in early April 2025. The national designated spatial plan has been approved for the Ermistu and North Kiviõli sites, while planning procedures continue for the Piirsalu and Aidu pre-selected areas.
Four companies have been selected to establish production in the defence industry park in Ermistu, Pärnu County: Nitrotol, Frankenburg Technologies, Infinitum Strike and the UK-based Thor Industries through its Estonian-registered entity Odin Defence. The park is likely able to accommodate one or two additional manufacturers.
