Hanwha Aerospace has broken ground on a new armoured vehicle production facility in Petrești, Dâmbovița County, marking a significant step in the company’s long-term industrial partnership with Romania and its broader European expansion strategy.
The site, named the Hanwha Armoured Vehicle Centre of Excellence (H-ACE) Europe, will become the company’s first production facility in Europe. Designed to anchor long-term cooperation with Bucharest, the plant is intended to support Romania’s defence modernisation efforts while reinforcing NATO and wider European security objectives.
The groundbreaking ceremony gathered senior Romanian officials, including Presidential Advisor for National Security and Foreign Policy Marius-Gabriel Lazurca, Deputy Prime Minister Barna Tánczos, Economy Minister Ambrozie-Irineu Darău, and Dâmbovița County Council President Corneliu Ştefan. Yong-chul Lee, Minister of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), also attended.
Jae-il Son, President and CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, described the project as more than a production investment. He said the facility would serve as the foundation for transforming Hanwha Aerospace Romania into what he called “a truly Romanian defence company” and a long-term platform for bilateral defence cooperation.
The Petrești facility will cover approximately 181,055 square metres. It will include advanced assembly lines, performance and validation testing infrastructure, a 1,751-metre driving test track, and dedicated research and development laboratories to support the full lifecycle of land systems production and sustainment.
Initial production will focus on the K9 155mm/52-calibre self-propelled howitzer and the K10 ammunition resupply vehicle. The site will provide assembly, integration, testing and lifecycle support, with localisation levels targeted at up to 80 per cent through Romanian industrial participation.
Under the company’s long-term roadmap, the facility could expand to support additional land systems, including infantry fighting vehicles, long-range precision strike platforms and unmanned ground vehicles. Hanwha Aerospace Romania estimates that a future expansion linked to a potential IFV programme could generate up to 2,000 direct and indirect jobs.
In July 2024, Hanwha Aerospace signed a contract with Romania for 54 K9 self-propelled howitzers and 36 K10 ammunition resupply vehicles. With the deal, Romania became the tenth member of the K9 User Club and the sixth NATO country to field the K9 system.
Established in 2025, Hanwha Aerospace Romania operates as a local subsidiary supporting production, sustainment and lifecycle management of advanced land systems, positioning Romania not only as a buyer, but increasingly as a producer and potential exporter within Europe’s defence industrial ecosystem.
