Hanwha Aerospace is building the largest private space launch vehicle production facility in South Korea.
The company announced on Feb. 15 that it held a groundbreaking ceremony for the tentatively named “Space Hub Launch Vehicle Manufacturing Center” in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, on the same day.
Hanwha Aerospace plans to secure infrastructure for space projects in earnest following the groundbreaking of the single assembly facility.
With an investment of approximately 50 billion won, the assembly plant will be constructed on a scale of 60,000 square meters, equivalent to 18,000 pyeong, by 2025. It will manufacture not only the fifth Nuri rocket, scheduled for launch in 2026, but also subsequent new launch vehicles. Furthermore, there are plans to collaborate with around 300 Nuri rocket participating companies and research and development institutions in the aerospace industry, centered around the single assembly plant, to foster an ecosystem for space launch vehicles.
Hanwha Aerospace was selected as the comprehensive system integration company for the Nuri rocket advancement project at the end of 2022 and is responsible for the production and launch operation of the Nuri rocket along with the Korea Aerospace Research Institute.
As part of the groundbreaking ceremony, Hanwha Aerospace is also conducting a Naming Contest for the Assembly Plant from Feb. 15 to 20 to attract public interest in South Korea’s space economy. Those who want to participate can join by leaving comments on the event video published on Hanwha Aerospace’s official YouTube channel. Various prizes will be provided to participants through a random draw.
Hanwha Aerospace CEO Son Jae-il stated, “As a leading space company representing South Korea, we will pursue the right path towards becoming a space economic powerhouse without wavering, and we will continue to open the era of private space economy through relentless challenges.”