Kenkou Aerospace Joins US Blue Origin's Next-Generation Rocket Engine Manufacturing Project

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Kenko Aerospace announced on the 22nd that it has signed its first contract related to Blue Origin and the BE-4 (Blue Engine-4). After two years of rigorous verification and preparation, it has also completed registration as a Blue Origin vendor (supplier).

Blue Origin uses the BE-4 engine as the main engine for New Glenn, a reusable launch vehicle, and also supplies it to Vulcan, the next launch vehicle of United Launch Alliance (ULA), a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.

ULA is a company that has exclusively provided launch services to NASA in the past and has also provided launch services to the U.S. Department of Defense and the CIA. The BE-4 engine is a next-generation engine using liquefied methane fuel, and Kenko is responsible for the parts required for engine production. Vulcan and New Glenn are launch vehicles optimized to send various types of satellites into space, expected to become major next-generation launch vehicles for commercial satellite launches as well as existing NASA demands.

Blue Origin is a private aerospace company established in 2000 by Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, for space development projects including lunar exploration and space travel. Bezos invests about $1 billion (approximately 1.1 trillion KRW) annually in Blue Origin and recently resigned as Amazon CEO to focus on space development projects.

Currently, in the U.S., with expectations that Bezos will end the "Amazon era" and officially open the "Blue Origin era," the space development competition between Musk and Bezos is reigniting. In response, Kenko is accelerating its aerospace business, starting with winning NASA’s Boeing SLS-related projects and participating in Blue Origin rocket engine projects, according to the company.

Kenko CEO Mingyu Lee said, "2020 was a challenging year with the first-ever sales decline since our establishment due to delays in civil aircraft business deliveries caused by COVID-19, but Kenko secured new projects such as large cargo aircraft MRO, and full-scale sales began in 2021. We have been continuously striving to secure new projects while expanding employment in preparation for increased production."

He added, "Through active fundraising in the capital market, we are preparing to expand domestic production facilities for the cargo aircraft MRO business and to expand the U.S. Georgia plant for space business growth. We are discussing comprehensive collaborations, including investments, with satellite and launch vehicle companies in the U.S. and Europe, planning to expand our business model beyond parts production. Please pay attention to Kenko’s progress in the rapidly growing U.S. aerospace market."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.