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Once passed off as a relic that only made conventional weapons, Hanwha Aerospace is returning to the spotlight.
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Bloomberg reported that the South Korean company is building howitzers up to three times faster than its competitors.
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The country’s rising arms exports underscore a global push to restart production of older weapons.
A South Korean arms manufacturer that traditionally specialized in older, less advanced weapons is responding to demand for 155mm howitzers by producing them faster than the West.
Hanwha Aerospace can build its self-propelled K9 howitzer in about six months for $3.5 million each, Bloomberg reported, with the company estimated to be two to three times as fast as its competitors.
By comparison, French supplier Nexter estimated it took about 30 months to deliver its Caesar self-propelled howitzer. However, in early January it was reported that the waiting time had been reduced by half.
That’s in line with estimated production times for other Western companies resuming howitzer production, although other factors, such as sourcing materials, could cost them additional time.
The US uses the M777 howitzer, built by the British company BAE Systems. In January, the company said it expected to reopen production of the artillery platform for new orders from the US military and deliver a first tranche next year.
German manufacturer KNDS Deutschland is also expected to resume production of its self-propelled PzH 2000 howitzer, using parts from Rheinmetall. In June it said it would deliver the first howitzers by mid-2025.
Bloomberg reported that Hanwha’s advantage comes from a streamlined manufacturing process that the company maintained as major Western defense companies moved to more advanced weapons years ago.
Son Jae-il, CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, told Bloomberg: “We are focusing on the middleweights, self-propelled guns, armored vehicles and tanks. We are already globally competitive in that.”
That class of weapons “is something that Lockheed Martin and Boeing do not do,” Yoon Sukjoon, a senior fellow at the Korea Institute for Military Affairs, told the newspaper.
South Korean law prohibits defense contractors from exporting weapons to active combat zones. But Hanwha finds business outside Ukraine.
Customers include Poland, which placed an order for 679 K9 howitzers in July 2022, and Romania, which was reportedly exploring its first defense contract with South Korea for $725 million in April.
According to Bloomberg, Hanwha’s annual revenues from arms exports have increased eleven times to $1.1 billion since the start of the war in Ukraine.
In September, Hanwha factory workers in Changwon told Agence France-Presse that the factory had expanded production three times after Russia invaded.
That growth underlines a global push to revive conventional weapons production as global tensions worsen and major militaries send their supplies to Kiev.
The US, for example, has begun to ramp up production of its 155mm shells from 10,000 rounds per month to a target of 100,000 rounds per month by 2025.
South Korean defense companies have emerged as major players in the sector, making the country the world’s tenth largest arms exporter, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
According to SIPRI, the country had a 2% share of the global defense export market from 2019 to 2023, about 12% more than the previous five years.
Read the original article on Business Insider
