Hanwha Group’s corporate logo atop one of its office buildings in downtown Seoul in this photo provided by the company.
SEOUL, July 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Hanwha Group, South Korea’s seventh-largest conglomerate by assets, announced Friday it will reshape its key affiliates to bolster its push for green energy, battery and semiconductor components.
Hanwha will combine its two defense units and place them under the wing of Hanwha Aerospace Co., its largest defense arm that primarily manufactures aircraft engines, the business group said in a release.
Hanwha Aerospace will also take over the defense unit of Hanwha Corp., the holding company, and absorb its wholly owned subsidiary, Hanwha Defense Co.
Hanwha Corp. will acquire Hanwha Precision Machinery Co., which primarily engages in the production of chip mounters, from Hanwha Aerospace and absorb its wholly owned construction subsidiary, Hanwha E&C Co., to streamline the structure.
Hanwha Impact, a chemical materials unit, will take over an energy equipment affiliate, Hanwha Power Systems Co., to bolster the hydrogen gas turbine business and other renewable energy enterprises.
The move is expected to give a boost to the energy-to-defense conglomerate in its efforts to reshape the enterprise into one that focuses on defense, and equipment and materials for rechargeable batteries, chips and solar panels.
Hanwha said it aims to turn Aerospace into the “Lockheed Martin of South Korea” by integrating its global business capabilities that will also serve to strengthen its export competitiveness.
Streamlining the equipment sector will help maximize the growth potential in the lucrative semiconductors and secondary battery components business, it said.
The latest regrouping came after Hanwha launched its now-key energy and solar panel unit, Hanwha Solutions Corp., by combining Hanwha Chemical and Hanwha Q Cells & Advanced Materials in early 2020.
Hanwha was founded in 1952 as an explosives maker and has diversified its businesses, ranging from chemicals, energy and defense to retail and financial.
(Yonhap)
