HD Hyundai launches multibillion-dollar U.S. shipbuilding investment program

HD Hyundai signed on Monday a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to establish a multi-billion-dollar investment program to revitalize the U.S. shipbuilding industry, marking the first milestone in the ‘Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA)’ initiative.

The Korean shipbuilding giant said it had signed the agreement with Cerberus Capital and the Korea Development Bank (KDB) at the InterContinental The Willard in Washington, D.C., to establish a Korea-U.S. maritime joint investment program.

The signing took place at the Korea-U.S. Manufacturing Partnership MOU ceremony, presided over by U.S. secretary of commerce Howard Lutnick and Korea’s minister of trade, industry and energy Kim Jung-kwan.

The ceremony was attended by Chung Kisun, executive vice chairman of HD Hyundai; Frank Bruno, CEO of Cerberus; and Kim Bock-kyu, vice chairman and COO of KDB.

The investment program aims to revitalize and enhance the maritime capabilities of the United States and allied nations, covering U.S. shipbuilding, maritime infrastructure, and advanced marine technologies, according to HD Hyundai.

The firms will prioritize investment in three areas: U.S. shipyard acquisition and modernization, supply chain reinforcement through capital investment in equipment