[Comprehensive] K-Shipbuilding CEOs to Hold Private One-on-One Meeting with U.S. Government Tomorrow [Yang Nakgyu's Defence Club]

Kim Heecheol of Hanwha Ocean and Lee Sanggyun of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries to Meet with Greer
Hanwha Ocean to Propose Plans for Maritime Workforce Development and New Shipbuilding Schedules

Kim Heecheol, CEO of Hanwha Ocean, and Lee Sanggyun, CEO of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, will hold a private one-on-one meeting with Jamieson Greer, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), on the 16th. Kim and Greer are scheduled to meet during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) trade meeting, which will be held in Jeju over two days starting on the 15th. It is unusual for the U.S. side to request a meeting with Korean companies since the Donald Trump administration. It is known that the U.S. separately requested meetings with both companies prior to Greer’s visit to Korea. During this meeting, the two sides are expected to discuss cooperation in the maritime and shipbuilding sectors between Korea and the U.S., and there is anticipation that this could serve as leverage in Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations.

According to the government, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant and Greer will attend the APEC trade meeting and hold a second high-level tariff meeting with the Korean government. During his first visit to Korea since taking office, Greer proposed a private one-on-one meeting with Hanwha Ocean on the occasion of the APEC trade meeting. This is because the U.S. Congress, in December last year, introduced the SHIPS Act for the security of the U.S. shipbuilding and port infrastructure, and Hanwha Ocean is considered the only shipbuilding company that fits the requirements of the bill.

During the private meeting, both sides are expected to have more concrete discussions than the customized shipbuilding cooperation plan presented by the Korean government at last month's Korea-U.S. 2+2 trade talks. Hanwha Ocean is expected to propose additional investments beyond the Philippine shipyard, cooperation on nurturing maritime personnel, and new shipbuilding schedules. If these proposals align with the U.S. shipbuilding schedule, a package request for large-scale shipbuilding could also be possible.

Hanwha Ocean is focusing on maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) business. Following last year's project for the military support ship Wally Schirra, Hanwha Ocean has also undertaken the repair of the replenishment oiler USNS Yukon, which is assigned to the U.S. 7th Fleet. Hanwha Ocean is targeting an additional 5 to 6 orders this year. For U.S. naval MRO projects, Hanwha Ocean plans to utilize Austal, an Australian shipbuilding and defense company. Last month, HD Hyundai signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Huntington Ingalls, the largest defense shipbuilder in the U.S., for cooperation on improving shipbuilding productivity and advanced shipbuilding technologies.

However, there are also competing countries in the U.S. naval MRO business. When Hanwha Ocean CEO Chung Insub attended the 2025 SelectUSA Investment Summit, a large Japanese delegation also participated. Japanese shipbuilding companies, including Uehara Atsushi, Director-General for Policy Planning at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, as well as Japan Marine United (JMU) and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, were present. The Japanese side is emphasizing the geographical advantage of the U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet being stationed at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan.

Hanwha Ocean plans to first secure orders for non-combatant ship construction. The basis for this is the SHIPS for America Act, jointly introduced on April 30 by both Democratic and Republican senators and representatives in the U.S. Senate and House. The bill includes a plan to increase the number of internationally registered merchant ships built in the U.S. from the current 80 to 250 within the next 10 years, to operate a "strategic sealift fleet." The strategic sealift fleet consists of civilian vessels that can transport supplies in emergencies and can only be mobilized in wartime. Hanwha Ocean assesses that, due to the many confidential aspects of combatant ships, it is more realistic for Korea-U.S. cooperation to start with the construction of military support ships.

As the Trump administration has expressed its intention to incorporate Greenland, a Danish territory, there are expectations that orders for icebreakers will surge. Hanwha Ocean has been constructing icebreaking liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers since its predecessor, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering.

Within and outside the government, there is a view that "K-Shipbuilding" could rapidly emerge as leverage in Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations. The two countries are currently coordinating the methods and scope of discussions in four key areas: tariff and non-tariff measures, economic security, investment cooperation, and currency (exchange rate) policy. As cooperation channels in industries such as shipbuilding become more concrete, it is expected that discussions will be concluded by the target date of July 8.