Poland becomes a rocket manufacturer — contract for Homar-K signed

This is the third executive contract for rockets for the South Korean K239 Chunmoo system. CGR-080 precision strike rockets, with a range of 80 km, will be manufactured on Polish soil. The contract was signed during a meeting of representatives of both governments attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, Deputy Minister of Defence Paweł Bejda, and Kang Hoon-sik, the president’s chief of staff and special presidential envoy of the Republic of Korea for strategic economic cooperation. 

Defence24.pl was the first to report the planned signing of the contract for Homar-K rockets.

Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2030 and conclude in 2033. The agreement covers the supply of more than 10,000 CGR-080 rockets.

The implementation of the contract will kick off domestic production in Poland of various types of rockets for the Homar-K multiple-launch rocket systems; further phases will depend on the execution of this first contract and on cooperation between the Polish and Korean defence industries. To carry out the programme a production plant will be built and operated by a joint-venture company whose shareholders are WB Electronics and Hanwha Aerospace. This will enable rocket production on Polish territory and thereby give the domestic defence industry new capabilities, with technology transfer to be carried out by the Korean economic partner.

The investment, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said, will be located in the Lubusz Voivodeship, in the Gorzów Wielkopolski area.

We have changed our approach to industry. We treat the state and private sectors equally. These PLN 14 billion are a sign of trust and respect for the Polish private defence industry. What matters is quality and that these are Polish companies.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.

State Secretary at the MoD, Paweł Bejda also commented on the contract.

More than a year ago, while on a delegation to Korea, we witnessed a test firing of the CGR-080 rocket. I was hugely impressed by the accuracy of that firing. It was perfection. During that visit we signed an executive contract for 72 Chunmoo launch modules that will be produced in Poland. We have the production technology for the launch containers, with production due to start in 2026. This is a partnership with a country that wants to share technology — including rocket technology. In total, our country will have 290 Chunmoo systems. The plants that will be built in Gorzów Wielkopolski will create hundreds of jobs, and this is also a very important contract for our security. For the first time in the history of the Third Republic of Poland, rockets will be produced in Poland. That sends a very important signal to our adversaries and to anyone who would consider raising a hand against our country. We will be a manufacturer of these systems. We will produce not only the launch containers but also the rockets for those containers,
MoD's State Secretary Paweł Bejda.

Piotr Wojciechowski, President of the Management Board at the WB Group.

„This is a great day for Poland — Poland is joining the exclusive club of rocket manufacturers,” WB Group CEO Piotr Wojciechowski told Defence24.pl. He stressed that local production will proceed with a very high degree of polonisation.

"A factory will be built in Poland where Polish and Korean specialists will work together. From an industrial and technical standpoint this is a very interesting undertaking — our cooperation within the joint venture is developing very professionally, we are getting to know one another better and I am convinced this collaboration will bring further equally interesting challenges."
Piotr Wojciechowski, WB Group President

The first executive contract in the Homar-K programme — for 218 launcher modules with a stock of CGR-080 rockets (80 km range) and CTM-290 rockets (290 km range) — worth USD 3.55 billion net (approx. PLN 12.7 billion at the current exchange rate), was signed in November 2022. The second contract — for 72 launcher modules including a transfer of production and support technology, and integration of 122 mm rockets — was signed in April 2024 for USD 1.6 billion. To date at least 156 launcher modules have been delivered, of which no fewer than 108 have been integrated onto Jelcz vehicles. Vehicle procurements are being carried out under separate contracts. 

The Homar-K system is based on South Korean K239 Chunmoo multiple-launch rocket systems capable of using several types of guided rockets. Homar-K sets are integrated with the Topaz fire-control system and are mounted on Jelcz chassis. Each launcher has two rocket pods; each pod can carry — depending on the ammunition used — six guided 239 mm rockets with an 80 km range, or a single guided tactical 607 mm rocket with a 290 km range. In the future the system is to be integrated with 122 mm launchers and new guided rockets with higher performance.  

Co-written with Mariusz Marszałkowski