Multiple rocket artillery system Chunmoo (Yonhap News)

By Koh Hyunjeong

A domestic company has concluded an export contract worth KRW 1.3 trillion with Norway on the multiple rocket artillery system Chunmoo.

Hanwha Aerospace on Feb. 2 announced its signing of the deal with the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (NDMA) to supply a Chunmoo "full package" worth USD 922 million (KRW 1.31 trillion) including 16 rockets, guided missiles and comprehensive military support.

The company beat fierce competition from leading weapons systems in the U.S. and Europe thanks in part to Seoul's proactive defense diplomacy and policy support.

Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik, who was visiting Norway as President Lee Jae Myung's special envoy for strategic economic cooperation, called the deal "the largest export to a Northern European country."

"This contract has firmly established the foothold for our entry into Northern Europe," he added.

Hanwha Aerospace plans to use this deal as an occasion to develop its Chunmoo system into a global bestseller among Korean weapons systems, following the K9 self-propelled howitzer.

hjkoh@korea.kr