South Korean arms producer Hanwha Defense has announced plans to develop a howitzer factory and regional hub in Romania.
The announcement follows the signing last year of a contract worth around $1 billion with Romania’s Ministry of Defense for 54 K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzers and 10 K10 howitzer re-supply vehicles.
Under the plans, the factory, which still requires approval from Bucharest, is to be developed in Dâmbovița County in southern Romania and will take two years to build, starting in early 2026.
The development, expected to create around 2,000 jobs, is timed to coincide with the delivery of the first K9s from South Korea. The cost of the project has not been made public.
Hanwha Defense, a subsidiary of Hanwha Aerospace, intends to shift production incrementally to Romania, with urgent orders being supplied from its manufacturing base in South Korea in the meantime.
In addition to producing, repairing and maintaining Romania’s future K9s, the plant will also work on Hanwha products procured by other European countries, The Defense Post website reported.
Under the plans, the factory, which still requires approval from Bucharest, is to be developed in Dâmbovița County in southern Romania and will take two years to build, starting in early 2026.
The development, expected to create around 2,000 jobs, is timed to coincide with the delivery of the first K9s from South Korea. The cost of the project has not been made public.
Hanwha Defense, a subsidiary of Hanwha Aerospace, intends to shift production incrementally to Romania, with urgent orders being supplied from its manufacturing base in South Korea in the meantime.
In addition to producing, repairing and maintaining Romania’s future K9s, the plant will also work on Hanwha products procured by other European countries, The Defense Post website reported.
“Our priority is the delivery of the K9 and K10… but we already have several such vehicles in NATO and Europe, so the idea is to be able to produce components, to be able to do maintenance and repairs here in Romania,” Hanwha Global Defense CEO Michael Coulter said during a meeting with Romanian reporters. “I think this is something that can be achieved fairly soon.”
One of South Korea’s major defense customers in Europe is Poland, which signed Seoul’s largest ever arms deal in 2022, valued at around $22 billion. The framework agreement included the supply of 1,000 K2 tanks and over 600 K9 howitzers, Poland’s defense ministry reported.
Under an agreement with Polish state-owned defense conglomerate PGZ, around a third of the country’s K9 procurement will be produced locally.
In late March, a delegation from Hanwha Ocean visited ship repair yards in Poland to discuss long-term cooperation in the maintenance, repair and overhaul of civilian and military vessels.
One of South Korea’s major defense customers in Europe is Poland, which signed Seoul’s largest ever arms deal in 2022, valued at around $22 billion. The framework agreement included the supply of 1,000 K2 tanks and over 600 K9 howitzers, Poland’s defense ministry reported.
Under an agreement with Polish state-owned defense conglomerate PGZ, around a third of the country’s K9 procurement will be produced locally.
In late March, a delegation from Hanwha Ocean visited ship repair yards in Poland to discuss long-term cooperation in the maintenance, repair and overhaul of civilian and military vessels.
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