South Korean Hanwha Aerospace Gets in on Space Business

Article by Park Si-soo                                     March 1, 2021                                       (spacenews.com)

• Hanwha Aerospace, the leading aircraft engine producer in South Korea with annual revenue of 5.32 trillion won (or $4.7 trillion US), is doing its best to position itself to become a major player in the new global space industry. The 37 year old Harvard educated architect of Hanwha’s space business strategy, Kim Dong-kwan, formed a “space task force” last year involving about 10 officials from Hanwha Aerospace, Hanwha Systems and Hanwha Corporation to advance and expand its technology for satellites and rocket boosters; satellite equipment and antennas; launch pads and solid fuel.

• In January, Hanwha won a 30% controlling stake in South Korean satellite maker, Satrec Initiative (SI) to produce small and medium-size Earth-observation satellites, ground systems and electro-optical payloads on Korean soil. In a statement, Hanwha said its investment in SI is to “possess core technologies related to the space satellite industry, which is expected to grow in the New Space era, and in the medium to long-term, preempt technological advance through synergy with the company to secure the capability of the satellite development technology.” For SI’s part, SI President Kim Ee-eul said the deal “provides the financial resources and strategic partnership that we can leverage for further growth.”

• While South Korea has been prohibited from developing solid-fueled launch vehicles by a bilateral nonproliferation agreement with the U.S. focused on ballistic missiles, last July the country won US permission to conduct research and to develop solid-propellant rockets, opening the door to Hanwha and other South Korean companies to enter the market.

• In December 2020, Hanwha Systems formed a strategic partnership with U.S.-based satellite communications company Kymeta. Hanwha plans to invest $30 million US into the development of Kymeta’s next-generation low Earth orbit antennas so it can “enter the LEO satellite antenna market early on, and diversify our technology portfolio,” said Hanwha Systems CEO Kim Youn-chul.

• In June 2020, Hanwha Systems acquired British satellite antenna developer Phasor Solutions, adding cutting-edge satellite communication antenna technology to its portfolio including “broadband electronically steerable antennas, that enable high-speed communications in-flight, at sea, or on land.” Phasor’s proprietary technologies include flat-antenna-beam steering and semiconductor chip-design technology.

SEOUL, South Korea — Hanwha Aerospace, the leading aircraft engine producer in

South Korea, is stepping up efforts to expand its space business.

In the latest move, Hanwha struck a 109 billion won ($96.8 million) deal in January to win a controlling 30 percent stake in a domestic satellite maker, Satrec Initiative (SI), by the end of April. Established in 1999 by engineers who contributed to making the nation’s first satellite KITSAT-1, SI is credited with developing core technologies to produce small and medium-size Earth-observation satellites, ground systems and electrooptical payloads on Korean soil.

Hanwha said while SI would be managed independently, Kim Dong-kwan — the first son of Hanwha Group chairman Kim Seung-youn and president of the group’s chemical affiliate, Hanwha Solutions — would join SI as a non-standing executive director to facilitate cooperation between the two companies.

In a statement, Hanwha said its investment in SI is to “possess core technologies related to the space satellite industry, which is expected to grow in the New Space era, and in the medium to long-term, preempt technological advance through synergy with the company to secure the capability of the satellite development technology.”

In a separate statement, SI President Kim Ee-eul said the deal “provides the financial resources and strategic partnership that we can leverage for further growth.” Kim added SI will “expand business to proactively respond to the growing domestic and international demands on Synthetic Aperture Radar and infrared satellite systems as well as optical satellite systems.”

After the deal was announced, SI hired 17 new engineers including those experienced in satellite design and developing synthetic aperture radar (SAR), according to SI.

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