On 9 December 2020, LIG Nex1 announced that it has signed a contract with the country’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) for the “underwater autonomous mine countermeasure system development” project.
According to LIG Nex1, the contract is worth 12 billion won (US$ 11 million). Development of the mine countermeasure AUV is expected to be completed by 2023.
“The goal is to develop a state-of-the-art unmanned system that can contribute to surveillance and reconnaissance missions.”
LIG Nex1
Once developed, the AUV is expected “to contribute significantly to the improvement of R&D capabilities in the field of unmanned underwater vehicles as well as safe and rapid countermining operations in the ROK Navy”, LIG Nex 1 comments.
Last week, the ROK Navy took delivery of another, early generation, underwater mine disposal vehicle. Developed by the local company Daeyang Electric Co., the AUV was first delivered in 2018, with 10 units put in operation as of now. According to the DAPA, the system has longer endurance than foreign systems used so far by the ROK Navy.
