Russia is managing to produce artillery shells at triple the speed of Ukraine’s allies for a quarter of the price, Sky News reported on May 26, referencing analysis from management consulting firm Bain & Company.
Using publicly available data, the firm claims that Russian factories can produce or refurbish 4.5 million 152 mm shells this year for $1,000 per round. European countries and the U.S. are only expected to produce 1.3 million 155 mm shells combined, at an average cost of $4,000 per unit.
Slow artillery production has hindered Ukraine’s progress on the battlefield. Soldiers claim that for every round they fire, Russia launches around five back.
A Senior Lieutenant with the 57th Brigade in Kharkiv Oblast, where Russia launched a new offensive on May 10, told Sky News that Ukraine urgently needs more supplies. However, he added that Ukrainian soldiers are making every round count and are able to destroy a target with one, two, or three shells.
An ammunition shortage has long been a cause for concern in Ukraine but has escalated this year. The EU failed to deliver on its promise to produce 1 million artillery shells between March 2023 and 2024 while disputes in Washington led to a severe delay in a $61 billion aid package.
Several countries have backed a Czech-led initiative to procure 800,000 shells for Ukraine proposed in February this year. In March, the EU allocated 500 million euros ($544 million) to bolster the EU's ammunition production capacity to 2 million shells per year by the end of 2025.
Ukraine will also begin domestic production of NATO-standard 155 mm shells in the second half of 2024, at the earliest, according to the Washington Post.
Read also: Inside the Swedish ammunition plant at the forefront of Europe’s push to ramp up shell production