HD Hyundai Heavy Industries lands MRO contract for USNS Alan Shepard

The USNS Alan Shepard / Courtesy of U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries said Wednesday it has secured a contract for the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of a U.S. Navy auxiliary ship, marking the first deal of its kind since Korea committed to major investments in the U.S. shipbuilding sector under the two countries’ recent tariff agreement.

According to the shipbuilder, it recently won the scheduled overhaul project for the USNS Alan Shepard, a 41,000-ton dry cargo and ammunition ship assigned to the U.S. Navy’s Seventh Fleet. Commissioned in 2007, the vessel is named after Rear Adm. Alan Shepard, the first American astronaut to travel into space.

Starting in September, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries will carry out the overhaul at a berth near HD Hyundai Mipo in Ulsan. The process will include propeller cleaning, the maintenance of various tanks and the inspection of onboard equipment. Upon completion of the project, the vessel is scheduled to be returned to the U.S. Navy in November 2025.

This is the first MRO order that a Korean shipbuilder has received since Seoul proposed the so-called “Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA)” project, a $150-billion investment initiative aimed at constructing new shipyards in the United States, training American shipyard workers, rebuilding supply chains related to shipbuilding and supporting the MRO of U.S. vessels.

The project is seen as having played a key role in lowering the U.S. “reciprocal” tariffs on Korean imports to 15 percent from the proposed 25 percent.

“This MRO contract is highly significant as it marks the first contract following the Korean government’s proposal of the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation initiative,” said Joo Won-ho, head of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ Naval & Special Ship Business. “As Korea’s leading shipbuilder, we will spare no effort in successfully completing the MRO for the U.S. Navy’s auxiliary ship.”

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has been strengthening its cooperation with the U.S. shipbuilding industry this year.

In April, the company signed a strategic partnership agreement with Huntington Ingalls Industries, the largest defense shipbuilder in the United States, for technological cooperation and joint construction in the naval ship sector.

In June, the company launched a strategic collaboration with U.S. shipbuilding group Edison Chouest Offshore in the commercial ship sector and hosted the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Leaders Forum.