All Hands on Deck: Korea’s Strategic Role in Revitalizing U.S. Shipbuilding

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In 2024, Korean shipbuilders Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries both entered into Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) agreements to support U.S. naval vessels in Korean yards. That same year, Hanwha acquired Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia, while HD Hyundai partnered with Anduril and Palantir to advance artificial intelligence innovations in unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) and autonomous naval systems, building on previous partnerships with Palantir to develop smart shipyard solutions. As the United States experiences a dearth of both naval and commercial shipbuilding capacity, U.S.-China competition at sea has led Washington to consider additional ways of revitalizing America’s once dominant position in the maritime domain. Legislative efforts such as the Ensuring Naval Readiness Act include potential to leverage allied support in strengthening the U.S. shipbuilding process, as does greater cooperation between the U.S. and Korean governments through the White House’s newly announced Shipbuilding Office. With Korean shipbuilders leading in advanced maritime technology and industrial capacity, their role in servicing and constructing U.S. naval and commercial maritime assets—both domestically and overseas—is poised to grow.

Please join KEI for a discussion with experts in the field to assess the status and prospects for the US-South Korea strategic cooperation in shipbuilding. Colin Grabow, Associate Director at the Cato Institute’s Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies, and Michael Viggiano, Director of Government Affairs for Defense at Hanwha USA, will discuss these topics and more.