Gwangju City Fully Launches 200kg-Class Cargo Drone Development

Mayor Lee Yong-seop: "We Will Also Become a Leading City in the Drone and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Sector"

On the afternoon of the 14th, Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City, signed a business agreement in the City Hall Business Room to develop an eco-friendly hydrogen fuel cell-based cargo drone with a payload capacity of 200 kg. From left to right in the photo are Lee Hae-chang, Director of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute; Kim Hwan-pil, Commander of the 11th Airborne Special Forces Brigade; Choi Soon-geon, Commander of the 31st Infantry Division; Kim Ji-chan, CEO of LIG Nex1; Lee Yong-seop, Mayor of Gwangju Metropolitan City; Ahn Hye-ri, CEO of Taekyung Electronics Co., Ltd.; Jeong Yeon-seok, CEO of Korea Aircraft Technology KAT Co., Ltd.; Kim Myung-jun, Director of the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute; and Kim Kwang-yeop, CEO of Hize Aviation Co., Ltd. Photo by Gwangju Metropolitan City.

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] The development of an eco-friendly hydrogen fuel cell-based cargo drone with a payload capacity of 200 kg, led by Gwangju Metropolitan City, is set to be actively pursued.

This project was planned under Gwangju’s leadership and confirmed as a Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy initiative. After a public announcement next month, the final project execution consortium is expected to be selected in April.

On the 14th, Gwangju City signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) centered on LIG Nex1 Co., Ltd. (the lead organization), which participates in this project, along with Hys Aviation Co., Ltd. (manufacturing), Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) (electronics), Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) (structure and performance analysis), Taekyung Electronics Co., Ltd. (mission equipment), Korea Aerospace Technology KAT Co., Ltd. (performance evaluation), the Army Special Warfare Command, and the 31st Infantry Division (demonstration support and demand).

Attendees at the signing ceremony included Mayor Lee Yong-seop, CEO Kim Ji-chan of LIG Nex1 Co., Ltd., President Kim Kwang-yeop of Hys Aviation Co., Ltd., Director Kim Myung-jun of ETRI, Director Lee Hae-chang of KARI, CEO Ahn Hye-ri of Taekyung Electronics Co., Ltd., CEO Jeong Yeon-seok of Korea Aerospace Technology KAT Co., Ltd., Brigadier General Kim Hwan-pil of the 11th Airborne Special Forces Brigade, and Major General Choi Soon-geon of the 31st Infantry Division.

The city formed a consortium comprising top institutions in each field, judging this project to be a crucial step toward revolutionary advancement in unmanned aerial vehicle technology and the era of Urban Air Mobility (UAM).

Through the agreement, Gwangju City and participating companies will mutually cooperate and support core technology development, establish policies, systems, and infrastructure for certification and demonstration, discover and promote joint research projects, and support and collaborate to ensure the project contributes to the development of Gwangju’s drone industry.

In particular, to overcome the operational time limitations of existing drones, the project plans to develop technology based on ‘eco-friendly hydrogen fuel cells,’ which have high energy density and are a core element of the Green New Deal. Once commercialized, this technology is expected to be utilized across various fields.

This hydrogen fuel cell technology development is anticipated to include participation from specialized hydrogen fuel cell manufacturers for mobility, which is expected to enhance the consortium’s completeness.

Gwangju City plans to establish infrastructure to support certification and demonstration necessary for cargo drone development and will spare no administrative or financial support to ensure successful technology development. It also plans to support the establishment of technology exchange and business networks by linking participating organizations such as LIG Nex1 with local companies.

Gwangju has previously selected the drone industry as one of its 11 strategic industries and created infrastructure such as drone flight practice grounds (Drone Park, National Practical Test Site) and the Onbitnuri Drone Center to make drones easily accessible to citizens. Additionally, it has worked to foster the drone industry by hosting the Bitgoeul Festival.

Moreover, since signing an MOU in August 2019 to foster defense drones, Gwangju has strived to develop defense drones as a specialized drone industry for the city, which served as the foundation for discovering this project.

Mayor Lee Yong-seop stated, “The technology secured through this project holds great significance as it can be utilized as core technology for transitioning to the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) era, including drone taxis and flying cars.” He added, “As an AI-centered city at the core of the 4th Industrial Revolution, Gwangju will do its utmost to become a leading city in the drone and unmanned aerial vehicle sectors, which are the trends of the 4th Industrial Revolution era.”