Seung-yeon Kim's Challenge in 'Aerospace Business'... Acquisition of Stake in Satrec I (Comprehensive)

Hanwha Aerospace, Plans for Gradual Stake Expansion

Setrec Eye's lineup of small satellites for Earth observation, including SpaceEye-T, a small satellite with world-class 0.3m-level resolution.

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] Kim Seung-yeon, Chairman of Hanwha Group, has embarked on a full-scale move to strengthen the aerospace business, which he has identified as a future growth engine.

Hanwha Aerospace, an affiliate of Hanwha Group's aerospace and defense sector, announced on the 13th that it has signed a share acquisition agreement with Setrec-i, a domestic space satellite specialized company.

Setrec-i is a satellite-specialized company established in 1999 by the personnel who developed Korea's first satellite, Uri-byul 1. It is the only domestic company capable of directly developing and manufacturing core components such as satellite bodies, ground systems, and electro-optical payloads.

Hanwha Aerospace plans to gradually expand its stake in Setrec-i. Initially, it will acquire about 20% of the issued shares through a new stock subscription (58.9 billion KRW) and ultimately secure approximately 30% of the shares by acquiring convertible bonds (50 billion KRW).

This equity investment is seen as Hanwha Group's first step to expand its aerospace business. Earlier, Chairman Kim stated in his New Year's address on the 4th, "We must accelerate the pace of innovation to become true global leaders in fields such as K-Defense, K-Energy, and K-Finance," and urged, "In new businesses such as future mobility, aerospace, green hydrogen energy, and digital financial solutions, seize future growth opportunities on a global scale."

Hanwha Aerospace is currently responsible for developing the liquid rocket engine for the Korean launch vehicle ‘Nuriho (KSLV-2)’ related to the space satellite business. Additionally, Hanwha Systems, a subsidiary of Hanwha Aerospace, is engaged in manufacturing components such as synthetic aperture radar (SAR), electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) payloads, satellite antennas, and communication terminals for ground systems. Through this share acquisition, it is expected to enter the domestic and international space satellite business sectors.

A Hanwha Aerospace official explained, "This share acquisition is a decision to invest in a domestic company possessing core technologies related to the space satellite industry, which is expected to grow in the New Space era where the main actors of space development are shifting from the government to the private sector, and to secure satellite development technology capabilities and gain technological superiority."

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