Hanwha Aerospace (Hanwha Aerospace) is speeding up preparations to bid for the Spanish Army's new self-propelled howitzer procurement program. Hanwha Aerospace decided to develop a new self-propelled howitzer based on the platform of the existing K9 self-propelled howitzer together with Indra, Spain's largest defense corporations.
This presents a new cooperation model that goes beyond building a production line locally to jointly carrying out design. If Hanwha Aerospace, which is competing with a German corporations, wins the contract, it would mark its first entry into Western Europe.
According to the defense industry on the 26th, Hanwha Aerospace on the 24th (local time) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Indra Group in Madrid, the Spanish capital, to modernize self-propelled howitzers. The core of this MOU is that Hanwha Aerospace provides K9 self-propelled howitzer platform technology, while Indra manufactures the hull and control and communications systems at its Gijón plant in northern Spain.
The two sides plan to put forward a "Spanish-style K9 self-propelled howitzer," developed with Hanwha Aerospace's platform and Indra's technology, for the Spanish Army's acquisition program.
In particular, the MOU includes not just a simple technology transfer but also provisions granting design authority for the K9 self-propelled howitzer. It is a Spanish-style K9 self-propelled howitzer incorporating Indra's technology. Spain will also have the right to export this model to third countries.
Indra Chair Ángel Escribano said, "This collaboration between Indra and Hanwha Aerospace will enable the Spanish military to secure real sovereignty and autonomy throughout the entire life cycle for a new ground platform that did not exist until now."
Hanwha Aerospace appears to have teamed up with Indra because of Europe's defense bloc formation. Recently in Europe, local firms backed by the European Union's (EU) joint weapons purchase loan program have been stepping up their pushback.
In particular, Germany, which often competes with Korea, is a leading participant in the EU's joint weapons purchase program SAFE. SAFE is a €150 billion (about 255 trillion won) military procurement fund that primarily supports member states making joint purchases with low-interest loans. As Spain is also a beneficiary of the first SAFE program, local corporations are effectively taking the lead.
Through this program, the Spanish Army plans to introduce 128 tracked and 86 wheeled self-propelled howitzers, as well as 214 ammunition resupply vehicles. If Hanwha Aerospace and Indra win the contract, the delivery volume is expected to be based not only on Hanwha Aerospace's K9 self-propelled howitzer but also on the K10 ammunition resupply vehicle and the K11 fire direction control vehicle.
The competitors in this program are cited as German defense corporations GDLES and KNDS. The tracked self-propelled howitzer Nemesis, jointly developed by the two corporations, is known to be the main rival. It is a model that mounts KNDS's unmanned turret on GDLES's tracked armored vehicle platform.
This model was unveiled for the first time at a Spanish defense exhibition last year. It can be operated by a crew of two and can fire on the move. It is being assessed as a next-generation tracked self-propelled howitzer that incorporates automation and unmanned concepts.
They are also known to have proposed a wheeled self-propelled howitzer that mounts a KNDS turret on GDLES's wheeled platform Piranha. This model can also be operated by two people and features 360-degree all-direction firing and the ability to fire while moving.
However, Germany's tracked and wheeled self-propelled howitzer models have not yet entered the force integration stage and are said to lack combat operation experience. In contrast, the K9 self-propelled howitzer has been deployed heavily in Eastern and Northern Europe, has gained recognition for its performance through combat experience, and is a model with proven production capacity.
About 1,000 K9 self-propelled howitzers have been deployed not only in Poland but also in Finland, Estonia, Norway and Romania. While there are no cases of wheeled self-propelled howitzers being deployed in combat, the K9 platform is being highlighted for its ability to produce both tracked and wheeled variants.
If Hanwha Aerospace actually secures the Spanish program, it would be recorded as the first entry into Western Europe by Korea's defense industry. It also carries significance as the first export model that expands beyond local final assembly to include local design.
A defense industry official said, "Looking at recent defense contract results, operational record, performance and delivery schedule are key," adding, "While there is clearly a trend toward defense bloc formation within Europe, countries such as Norway also choose practical benefits, so the prospects for winning the contract look promising."