HD Hyundai starts joint shipbuilding venture in US
HD Hyundai has begun taking steps to build ships in the United States in partnership with Edison Chouest Offshore, the Korean shipbuilding conglomerate said Wednesday.
According to the company, a delegation of more than ten key executives and engineers from ECO, including its CEO Dino Chouest, visited Korea on Tuesday to discuss detailed plans for the joint shipbuilding project with HD Hyundai.
The ECO delegation visited HD Hyundai's Global R&D Center in Gyeonggi Province and the dockyards of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Mipo in Ulsan during their two-day visit.
HD Hyundai said the US partners were briefed on the Korean shipbuilder's latest technologies and shipbuilding capabilities and had a chance to review the operational status of HD Hyundai-built vessels currently deployed around the world at the Digital Insight Center at the Global R&D Center. The ECO officials also took a look at how HD Hyundai developed its automated solutions and applied them in practical shipyard operations, as well as how it implemented robotic welding technologies.
According to HD Hyundai, top leadership from both companies agreed to expand their partnership beyond the joint construction of ships to explore future business opportunities together.
'HD Hyundai fully supports efforts to revitalize the US shipbuilding industry,' said HD Hyundai Executive Vice Chairman Chung Ki-sun.
'The joint shipbuilding project between the two companies in the US will serve as an excellent example of Korea-US cooperation in the shipbuilding sector.'
The ECO delegation visited HD Hyundai's shipyards in Ulsan on Wednesday to closely examine their design and production processes, along with their dock operation and management systems. HD Hyundai said engineers from ECO will remain in Korea for another week to learn about the Korean shipbuilder's techniques and discuss project specifics.
The two companies previously signed a memorandum of understanding for a strategic and comprehensive partnership in June this year, agreeing to start jointly building medium-sized container vessels at ECO's shipyard in the US by 2028. The partners also pledged to expand the scope of their cooperation beyond ships to include port cranes, which have been central to US national security concerns as it seeks to curb China's influence.
HD Hyundai dispatched a team of more than ten experts to ECO's shipyard in the US last month to inspect the partner's production facilities and systems and provide consultations on enhancing productivity.
ECO, which operates 18 commercial shipyards across the US, maintains a fleet of 300 offshore support vessels around the world.
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