Hanwha Aerospace partially suspends production at key defence facility after deadly explosion

Seoul, June 2 (IANS) Hanwha Aerospace, a defence affiliate under Hanwha Group, said on Tuesday it has partially suspended production at its Daejeon facility after a deadly explosion at the plant.

In a regulatory filing, the arms manufacturer said it was ordered by labour authorities to halt operations at the facility, about 140 kilometers south of Seoul, due to a serious workplace accident under South Korea’s occupational safety laws.

The explosion killed five people and injured two others and police have launched a joint probe to investigate the exact cause of the accident, reports Yonhap news agency.

Hanwha officials said workers were cleaning propellant powder residue from tools used in the production of propulsion systems at the time of the explosion.

Investigators plan to determine the source of the ignition and examine whether flammable materials were present at the scene.

The Daejeon plant is a key defence facility and is designated as a secret defence factory. It makes various weapons systems, including the Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers and long-range surface-to-air missiles (L-SAM).

The affected production lines generated 1.32 trillion won (US$870 million) in revenue last year, accounting for 4.94 percent of Hanwha Aerospace’s total revenue of 26.7 trillion won, according to the company.

The arms procurement agency said on Tuesday its affiliated bodies will provide technical assistance to an investigation into a recent explosion at a Hanwha Aerospace factory.

The Defence Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said the agency has also formed a task force to manage the situation, after Monday’s explosion and fire at the Hanwha Aerospace plant left five people killed and two others injured.

“We will support, when necessary, the investigation by utilising our personnel and technical expertise of the Agency for Defence Development and the Defence Agency for Technology and Quality and other specialised institutions in the process of determining the cause of the accident,” DAPA spokesperson Kim Joo-chul said during a press briefing.

Regarding concerns over possible lapses in inspections at high-security defence industry facilities, Kim said the agency has been conducting annual inspections based on relevant laws.

—IANS

na/