A second military factory linked to arms suppliers to Ukraine has exploded in the EU in three days
13 August 21:54
An explosion occurred at the KNDS Ammo Italy factory in Italy. The facility is part of the KNDS defense holding company, which supplies weapons to Ukraine. The plant, located near Rome, manufactures medium- and large-caliber ammunition for the army and navy. According to the Italian news agency ANSA, the explosion occurred in the gunpowder pressing shop, reports "Komersant Ukrainian".
Several fire crews arrived at the scene. The cause of the explosion is unknown.
KNDS Ammo Italy is part of the Franco-German KNDS Group. According to the company, hundreds of its combat systems are in service with Ukraine. These include the Leopard 1 and Leopard 2, CAESAR, PzH 2000, AMX-10 RC, and Gepard. KNDS Ukraine, a subsidiary of KNDS, operates in Kyiv and collaborates with the Ukrainian defense industry. Among its announced projects are the repair and maintenance of KNDS equipment, the production of spare parts, and the production of 155-mm artillery shells in Ukraine.
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On August 10, a fire broke out at the EMCO facility near the village of Bilitsa in Bulgaria. EMCO is owned by Bulgarian arms magnate Emilian Gebrev. His companies have been supplying shells and weapons to Ukraine since 2014. After a truck caught fire, the blaze spread to an ammunition warehouse, triggering a chain reaction of explosions. Approximately 300 employees were evacuated. No one was injured. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Bulgarian authorities have previously investigated a series of explosions at defense industry facilities. In 2011, an explosion occurred at a warehouse in Lovnidol; in 2015, at warehouses in Iganovo; and in 2020, at a facility in Mglizh. In 2021, the prosecutor’s office reported suspicions that six Russian citizens were involved in these incidents. Two explosions at EMCO ammunition depots near Karnobat were also investigated following the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine. The first occurred on July 31, 2022, and the second on June 25, 2023.
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