Hanwha Aerospace to invest $2.2b in Arkansas ammunition production hub

Hanwha Aerospace will invest $2.2 billion (3 trillion won) to establish an ammunition production hub on a US Army installation.

Hanwha Defense USA, the US subsidiary of Hanwha Aerospace, held an office opening ceremony Monday (local time) at Pine Bluff Arsenal (PBA), a US Army base in Arkansas, the company announced Tuesday.

Hanwha Defense USA was selected in January as the lessee for the Pine Bluff Arsenal site following a US Army tender. The office opening marks the first step in executing the plan to build an ammunition production base. Hanwha Aerospace will construct facilities at the site to manufacture 155mm artillery shell components and propellant charges.

The new facility will feature a vertically integrated manufacturing system covering the entire ammunition production process from raw materials to finished products. It is expected to expand US domestic ammunition production capacity and modernize the country's aging ammunition industrial base.

Hanwha Aerospace plans to invest $2.2 billion over seven years to build out the production hub and create approximately 400 jobs.

The company plans to accelerate its US business expansion on the back of this investment. Last month, it signed a contract with the US Army to supply a prototype K9 wheeled self-propelled howitzer (K9MH) under the Mobile Tactical Cannon (MTC) program, and is setting up a facility in Opelika, Alabama, for prototype assembly, integration and testing.

"We are keeping our commitment to strengthen the US defense industrial base through investment, job creation and Hanwha's manufacturing capabilities," Hanwha Defense USA President Michael Coulter said. "We will work to elevate US ammunition industry capabilities to the next level while actively contributing to expanded defense cooperation between the two countries."

Meanwhile, Hanwha has been pursuing a localization strategy to strengthen its push into the global defense market. In Australia, it established H-ACE, the first overseas defense production base built by a Korean defense company. Earlier this year, H-ACE held a rollout ceremony for three AS9 self-propelled howitzers.