Norway picks Hanwha and Chunmoo for long-range fires

Norway has ordered 16 K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers from Hanwha Systems. The platforms will increase the indirect fires capabilities of the country’s land forces, providing a relatively mobile and responsive option with missile ranges up to 500 km that can counter Russia’s own assets in the High North.  

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on February 3, 2026.

BLUF: 

• Norway has picked Hanwha’s Chunmoo multiple-rocket launcher at a contract value of $922 million over four competitors for its long range fires requirement. 
• Delivery expected between 2028 and 2031 with missile production in Poland. The systems will provide long-range precision strike capabilities out to 500 km. 

Norway has signed a contract for 16 K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers (MRLs) with Hanwha Systems, valued at $922 million (£714.73 million/€853.7 million) according to a February 2 press release. The procurement project has a total budget of $2 billion, according to Hanwha, which may indicate that further orders for missiles will follow. 

The launchers and training materials will be delivered first between 2028 and 2029, with missiles to follow from 2030 – 31, the Norwegian MoD explained in its own press release. This rapid delivery has become characteristic of South Korea’s approach to defence exports, often taking vehicles directly from production for the country’s own forces to meet export needs. 

• M142 HIMARS delivered to Estonia – Calibre Defence 
• US soldiers fire PrSM from all platforms in milestone test – Calibre Defence
• Defence in brief: Hanwha and WB Group form JV  

It contrasts sharply with Lockheed Martin, for example. Long lead times and cost factors were driving Estonia to consider other MRLs rather than additional M142 HIMARS orders in February 2025. This resulted in another contract for the K239 Chunmoo in December 2025.

But there are many more systems than just HIMARS and the Chunmoo. According to the Norwegian MoD, Hanwha’s system was selected over the following competitors: 

• KNDS: Likely offering EuroPULS, Rejected after initial evaluation and clarification meetings in June 2025 for failing to meet the requirements for the delivery of a complete system.
• SAAB/Boeing: Offering unclear. No bid received by the deadline of March 2025. 
• Rheinmetall: GMARS, reason for rejection not given. But the press release states that none of the competitors apart from Hanwha were able to meet the missile ranges required. 
• Lockheed Martin: M142 HIMARS, reason for rejection not given. Presumably related to costs and delivery time frames. 

The Norwegian MoD made the selection criteria clear in its own press release stating, “Hanwha’s CHUNMOO system was the only bid that met all the requirements in the competition. The contract provides the Armed Forces with 16 launch systems and a larger number of missiles with three different ranges, including those with a capacity of up to 500 kilometers. None of the other commercial bidders could deliver a comparable range.” 

That upper range limit is significant and likely refers to the CTM-X tactical ballistic missile, which is a relatively new development for Hanwha. The only competing options are the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) from Lockheed Martin, which is typically credited with a range of 400 km. 

Missile production for all European users of the Chunmoo will be carried out through Hanwha’s joint venture with the WB Group in Poland. This will no doubt ease concerns around supply chain security and of funding leaving Europe. 

What does the Norway’s offset agreement mean?

Hanwha is expected to provide 120% of the contract value in industrial cooperation with Norwegian companies. But how does that work? Wouldn’t the contract have a negative value? Well, here is how companies like Hanwha make this work without going bankrupt: 

• Technology Transfer: If Hanwha shares high-end intellectual property with a Norwegian firm, the “value” of that tech transfer is often negotiated at a much higher rate than the actual cost of sharing it.
• Indirect Offsets: Hanwha might help Norwegian companies enter the South Korean market for unrelated goods (like green energy or shipbuilding). The projected revenue from those new business leads counts toward the 120% target.
• Long-term Ecosystem: By integrating Norwegian parts into their global supply chain, Hanwha ensures that every time they sell a system to another country, they buy parts from Norway. This fulfills their obligation over 10 or 20 years, rather than as an upfront cost.

Tech profile: K239 Chunmoo Multiple Rocket Launcher

The K239 Chunmoo is a highly mobile, all-weather multiple-launch rocket system (MLRS) integrated onto a Hanwha 8×8 cross-country truck chassis. Operated by a three-person crew housed in an armoured cab providing STANAG 4569 Level 2 protection, the vehicle has a combat weight of approximately 31 tonnes. It is powered by a 450 hp diesel engine that enables a maximum road speed of 80 km/h and an operational driving range of 450 km. A launcher can be accompanied by an ammunition support vehicle to reload the pods once fired.

The system is noted for its modularity, featuring two launch pods that can be rapidly reloaded and are capable of firing a diverse array of munitions, ranging from 131 mm unguided rockets to 600 mm tactical ballistic missiles. The standard loadout is 12 of the CGR-080 rockets but Hanwha is working on many different munitions that are covered in the table below and thought to be at different states of readiness.

K239 Chunmoo missiles
Missile Name	Range	Payload	Seeker/Guidance
CGR-080 (239 mm)	30-80 km	90 kg High Explosive (HE) Penetrator or Cluster Munition	GPS-aided Inertial Navigation System (INS)
L-PGW100 (Loitering)	80-100 km	6 kg Shaped Charge/Fragmentation warhead (25 kg total munition)	AI-enabled EO/IR sensor package with SATCOM datalink
CTM-MR (280 mm)	50-160 km	100 kg High Explosive/Blast Fragmentation	GPS-aided INS
CTM-ASBM (280 mm)	50-160 km	Specialised Anti-Ship Penetration warhead	Imaging Infrared (IIR) Seeker with GPS/INS
CTM-290 (600 mm)	80-290 km	490-500 kg Unitary High Explosive/Penetrator	GPS-aided INS (9 m CEP)
CTM-X/CTM -500	250-500 km	Deep Strike HE (approx. 80% of CTM-290)	GPS-aided INS

Calibre comment: How long-range precision strike will help Norway

Norway isn’t the only Nordic state looking at long-range precision strike capabilities. Denmark has also expressed an interest in extremely long-range capabilities that could reach Russian airfields, and there are various air and ground-launched programmes underway in all four Nordic states.

• Denmark to procure long-range precision weapons for OCA – Calibre Defence
• Russia and the strategic challenge to the North – Calibre Defence 

Fundamentally the Nordic states see their defence as being integrated, with plans to combine their forces during an invasion or conflict. This is combined with the accurate perception that Russian forces are placing an increased focus on long-range precision strikes. At an operational-tactical level, Russia is quite comfortable conducting strikes against dynamic targets up to 150 km beyond its line of contact. Static targets are engaged at much deeper ranges, but the fact remains that its forces are increasingly capable of conducting what they refer to as non-contact warfare. Essentially this means an extensive exchange of long-range precision munitions before closing with armoured forces. Norway and the Nordics need to be prepared for this, both with air defences and long-range assets of their own that can degrade Russia’s strike arsenal. 

The lead image shows a K239 Chunmoo MRL. Credit: Hanwha Systems.