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US courts Korean shipbuilders to counter China at APEC meeting
HD Hyundai Executive Vice Chairman Chung Ki-sun, right, shakes hands with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Jeju, Friday. Courtesy of HD Hyundai
By Park Jae-hyuk
HD Hyundai, Hanwha meet USTR in Jeju
The United States used the two-day APEC trade ministers' meeting in Jeju as an opportunity to boost cooperation with Korean shipbuilders, part of the Donald Trump administration's efforts to revive American shipyards and curb China's dominance in the maritime sector.
HD Hyundai, the parent company of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), said Friday that Executive Vice Chairman Chung Ki-sun met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the southern island that day to discuss bilateral cooperation in the shipbuilding industry.
Greer's first-ever meeting with Korean shipbuilding executives was reportedly arranged at the request of the U.S. government. It follows U.S. Navy Secretary John Phelan's visit last month to the shipyards of HD HHI and Hanwha Ocean — the second Trump administration's first-ever dispatch of a secretary-level official to Korea, which prompted top management of both companies to showcase their technologies.
According to HD Hyundai, Chung introduced the recent collaboration between HD HHI and Huntington Ingalls Industries, which operates a shipyard in Mississippi.
"We deeply appreciate the U.S. commitment to rebuilding its shipbuilding industry," Chung said. "HD Hyundai stands fully prepared and willing to contribute wherever our capabilities are needed."
He also reportedly highlighted the monopoly of Chinese port crane manufacturers in the U.S. market, introducing HD Hyundai Samho — another HD Hyundai affiliate — as a company capable of supplying port cranes.
"Proposing concrete areas of cooperation including joint technology development, shipbuilding cooperation and skilled workforce training programs, he emphasized the growing need for closer industrial cooperation between the two nations," an HD Hyundai official said.
Hanwha Ocean CEO Kim Hee-cheul, left, shakes hands with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Jeju, Friday. Courtesy of Hanwha Ocean
Hanwha Ocean sent CEO Kim Hee-cheul to Jeju for his meeting with Greer the same day. The company has a track record of winning two contracts to maintain, repair and overhaul U.S. naval ships. It also owns the Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia.
According to the shipbuilder, Kim explained to Greer how the company plans to stabilize the supply chain and transfer its smart manufacturing technology to the Philly Shipyard.
"Hanwha Ocean aims to be a strategic partner in helping the U.S. shipbuilding industry take a leap forward," he said. "Based on our proven technologies and smart manufacturing system, we will deliver tangible results on U.S. soil."
Greer's series of meetings with the two Korean shipbuilders is widely seen as providing Seoul with leverage in ongoing tariff negotiations with Washington.