South Korea's Largest Defense Company Hanwha Systems Invests 200 Billion Won in Gumi

Gumi Industrial Complex.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Koo Dae-sun] Hanwha Systems, the largest defense electronics company in Korea, is building a factory in Gumi, Gyeongbuk Province, and investing 200 billion KRW in the precision machinery industry, including radar.

Gyeongbuk Province and Gumi City announced on the 12th that they signed an agreement at Gumi City Hall for Hanwha Systems to invest 200 billion KRW in Gumi by 2024. Attendees included Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province; Kim Jang-ho, Mayor of Gumi; Uh Seong-cheol, CEO of Hanwha Systems; and Kim Young-sik, a member of the People Power Party representing Gumi.

Hanwha Systems, which supplies cutting-edge radar for the next-generation fighter jet ‘KF-21’ and the Korean Patriot system ‘Cheongung-II,’ will use this investment agreement as an opportunity to move from the currently leased Samsung Electronics Gumi 1 plant to expand and relocate to the former Hanwha Gumi factory site in the Gumi 1 Industrial Complex.

A Gyeongbuk Province official stated, “Hanwha Systems plans to immediately construct a new factory with the 200 billion KRW investment and invest in the precision machinery sector such as radar. This will increase new employment by about 250 people.”

Defense affiliates within the Hanwha Group, including Hanwha Systems, are ranked around 30th among the world’s top 100 defense companies, continuously raising their stock prices and being recognized as key players in K-defense.

Earlier, on the 28th of last month, Gyeongbuk Province signed a memorandum of understanding for an investment of 110 billion KRW with LIG Nex1. With the ongoing investment relay including Hanwha Systems, Gumi is expected to emerge as a mecca of the defense industry.

According to the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET), a national policy research institute under the Prime Minister’s Office, Korea’s defense exports this year surpassed a record high of 10 billion USD. If ongoing bids such as Australia’s Redback armored vehicle proceed smoothly, exports could reach up to 20 billion USD, raising expectations that Korea may enter the world’s top 4 defense exporters alongside the US, Russia, and France.

In Gyeongbuk, centered on Gumi, the largest production hub for guided weapons and ammunition, leading domestic defense system companies such as Hanwha Systems, LIG Nex1, and Poongsan, along with about 250 small and venture defense companies, are located, making it an optimal site for a defense innovation cluster.

Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, said, “With large-scale investments from the two major pillars of K-defense, LIG Nex1 and Hanwha Systems, realized in Gumi, attracting the defense innovation cluster has become an unstoppable trend. Through attracting the defense innovation cluster, Gyeongbuk will lead Korea’s position as a ‘Top 4 global defense exporter.’”

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