Hanwha Systems beats KAI for Korea's 40-satellite SAR constellation contract
Hanwha Systems · KAI
Hanwha Systems beat KAI to win a South Korean government contract to build a 40-satellite military SAR constellation.
what happened
South Korea's Agency for Defense Development selected Hanwha Systems to develop a constellation of 40 small synthetic aperture radar satellites after a competitive bid opened Oct. 30, per The Elec. Hanwha bid 368.5 billion won, 65.1% of the estimated 565.9 billion won contract price, beating Korea Aerospace Industries' 460.3 billion won bid by 91.8 billion won, per The Elec and Seoul Economic Daily. The constellation is part of a broader 1.4223 trillion won government program involving the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, Korea AeroSpace Administration and Korea Coast Guard, intended to cut surveillance revisit times over the Korean Peninsula and surrounding waters from two hours to 20-30 minutes, per The Elec.
why it matters
The win extends Hanwha's push into SAR manufacturing, building on its 2023 debut as the first South Korean private company to launch its own SAR satellite and a Jeju Space Center production line rated for up to 100 satellites a year; Hanwha said it intends to use the program to pursue SAR export opportunities, a signal to SAR constellation operators and manufacturers elsewhere of a new, state-backed competitor emerging from South Korea.
signal-to-noise
quick facts
- Companies
- Hanwha Systems, KAI
- Category
- procurement
- Impact
- major
- SNR
- 4 / 5
- Event date
- 2026-10-30
- Published
- 2026-10-30 13:52 UTC