HD Hyundai Co. has moved beyond preliminary discussions with Edison Chouest Offshore, hosting a delegation of American executives and engineers at its Korean facilities this week to advance their joint shipbuilding venture. The collaboration represents South Korea’s largest shipbuilder’s most concrete step toward establishing US manufacturing operations as Washington escalates pressure on Chinese-built vessels.
CEO Dino Chouest led more than ten key executives and engineers from ECO during their Tuesday-Wednesday visit to HD Hyundai’s research center in Gyeonggi province and shipyards in Ulsan. 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 partnership, formalized in June, calls for constructing mid-sized LNG dual-fuel containerships at ECO’s US facilities by 2028. HD Hyundai will support the initiative by providing ship design support, equipment procurement services, and construction technology assistance, as well as by partially manufacturing and supplying ship blocks.
The alliance gains urgency as President Trump announced plans to create a new office of shipbuilding in the White House that would offer special tax incentives to bring more shipbuilding back to the US. The US Trade Representative’s office last month proposed charging up to $1.5 million for Chinese-built vessels entering US ports as part of its probe of China’s growing domination of the global shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors.
According to Clarkson Research, US facilities received orders for only three 3,600 TEU-class containerships from domestic shipping companies between 2022 and 2024, all of which were placed at Philly Shipyard. The limited activity underscores challenges facing American shipbuilders as China’s shipbuilding sector has established a position of dominance in the global market through unfair non-market practices, creating over 200 times the capacity of the US shipbuilding industry.
ECO operates five commercial shipyards across the United States and maintains a 300-vessel offshore support fleet. The Louisiana-based company recently formed the United Shipbuilding Alliance with Bollinger Shipyards to capitalize on federal initiatives supporting domestic maritime manufacturing.
HD Hyundai’s US expansion includes recent agreements with Huntington Ingalls Industries and Fairbanks Morse Defense, positioning the Korean giant as a key partner in Washington’s efforts to revive American shipbuilding capabilities while reducing dependence on Chinese-manufactured vessels.
