Korean shipbuilders form MASGA task force to boost US industry ties
South Korea's big three shipbuilders — HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Hanwha Ocean and Samsung Heavy Industries — established a task force to bolster the 'Make American Shipbuilding Great Again' initiative, aimed at revitalizing the US shipbuilding industry.
According to industry sources Monday, the recently launched task force was coordinated by the Korea Offshore & Shipbuilding Association and consists of one employee and one executive from each of the three companies.
Having held a preliminary meeting, the task force plans to begin detailed discussions on the MASGA project in mid-August.
'The main objective of the task force is to support the government's MASGA project,' said an industry source familiar with the matter on condition of anonymity.
'Specifically, the discussions will focus on how each company can invest in and strengthen ties with the US shipbuilding sector. The government will then design the $150 billion shipbuilding cooperation fund to finance these US strategies.'
On June 30, the Korean government announced a $150 billion fund, part of a broader $350 billion investment initiative, to invest in strategic US sectors, to secure more favorable tariff rates for Korean exports. The shipbuilding fund represents the largest single-industry allocation, making up 43 percent of the total fund.
While the specific details of the fund remain undisclosed, the government indicated that it will be primarily used for shipyard construction, workforce training, shipbuilding, and maintenance, repair and operations, or MRO.
Korean officials say the large-scale shipbuilding fund played a crucial role in reducing the threatened 25 percent blanket tariff on Korean goods to 15 percent.
'The US likely did not anticipate Korea's preparations, including extensive research and proposals, for its shipbuilding sector,' said Kim Yong-beom, the presidential chief of staff for policy, during an on-air broadcast at KBS on Sunday. 'Without shipbuilding, the (trade) negotiations might not have reached a conclusion.'
Kim also displayed the 'MASGA cap,' which features white lettering on a red background, the full MASGA logo and the US and Korean flags positioned side by side at the top. Kim explained, 'We designed this cap and brought about ten of them to the US. We put our utmost effort into creating these symbolic items.'
According to Kim, Korea's Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan presented the cap, along with a large panel, during a meeting with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who praised it as a 'great idea.'
Ahead of the Korea-US tariff agreement on July 31, Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan visited Washington to aid the Korean government's tariff talks. Kim joined an unofficial chaebol delegation that included Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun.
Meanwhile, Korea's shipbuilding trio is pursuing various measures to boost its operations in the US.
Hanwha Ocean is considered the most aggressive investor in the US, having acquired Philly Shipyard for $100 million last year. The company is also actively engaged in local facility investments, job creation and technology transfers, with plans to increase its annual shipbuilding capacity to up to 15 vessels from the current one to 1.5 vessels by 2035.
HD Hyundai is focusing on forging partnerships with the US shipbuilders. It intends to jointly build LNG dual-fuel container ships with Edison Chouest Offshore and share its shipbuilding know-how with Huntington Ingalls.
Samsung Heavy Industries, the latecomer among the three, announced during a recent second-quarter earnings call that it is discussing cooperative measures with its US counterparts.
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