Recently, China’s two major state-owned shipbuilding enterprises—China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited and China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation Limited—announced their merger to create the world’s largest listed shipbuilding group, drawing high attention from industries in South Korea and the United States. South Korea’s Seoul News reported that the combined new company is expected to achieve annual revenues of 122 billion yuan. The Wall Street Journal noted that the merged entity will better reduce costs through economies of scale and address industry turbulence caused by multiple U.S. measures. Currently, the U.S. and South Korea are advancing cooperation in shipbuilding. Facing this “super competitor,” can their collaboration reshape the global shipbuilding landscape?
“MASGA” Project Gains Momentum
According to Nikkei Asia on the 16th, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung will visit Hanwha Ocean Group’s shipyard in Pennsylvania, USA, on the 26th of this month, with U.S. President Donald Trump likely accompanying him. The report stated that this visit symbolizes the importance of shipbuilding in U.S.-South Korea relations. South Korea is currently the world’s second-largest shipbuilding nation after China, and the U.S. hopes to leverage South Korea’s expertise and capital to revitalize its declining shipbuilding industry.
On the 14th of this month, South Korea’s Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy, Kim Jeong-gwan, attended the naming ceremony for two LNG (liquefied natural gas) carriers exported to the U.S. He stated that “MASGA” (Make American Shipbuilding Great Again) not only helps revive the U.S. shipbuilding industry but also provides opportunities for South Korean companies to expand their market. These two ships, built by Hanwha Ocean and ordered by a U.S. energy company, are seen as landmark achievements of the “MASGA” project.
Additionally, Yonhap News reported that on the 13th, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Joseph Yun visited HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ Ulsan factory to inspect the “MASGA” project, discussing ways to deepen shipbuilding cooperation. South Korean media noted that the “MASGA” project, jointly promoted by the U.S. and South Korea, is accelerating, aiming to secure a place for the U.S. shipbuilding industry in the global landscape.
As a core South Korean enterprise in “MASGA,” HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is actively taking concrete steps to advance cooperation. Yonhap reported that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries will collaborate with the University of Michigan and Seoul National University to train shipbuilding talent and establish partnerships with U.S. shipbuilders Edison Chouest Offshore and Huntington Ingalls Industries for joint commercial shipbuilding and naval projects. Earlier this year, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries also secured a contract for the periodic maintenance of a U.S. Navy supply ship. These projects are seen as symbols of U.S.-South Korea cooperation moving from rhetoric to practice.
“South Korea’s ‘MASGA’ Proposal Could Reshape U.S. Shipbuilding,” reported The Diplomat on the 14th. According to the proposal, South Korea’s shipbuilding industry will invest $150 billion in the U.S. maritime sector, including upgrading U.S. shipyards, training American workers, supporting U.S. Navy maintenance, and jointly producing ships domestically in the U.S.
The report noted that “MASGA” directly aligns with the White House’s political agenda while offering substantive industrial cooperation. If successful, it could reverse decades of decline in U.S. shipbuilding, accelerate naval modernization, and strengthen the industrial foundation of the U.S.-South Korea alliance. For South Korea, the project provides an opportunity to “enter a market long closed to foreign shipyards.”
Facing Numerous “Obstacles”
Despite recent frequent news about U.S.-South Korea shipbuilding cooperation, many analysts remain skeptical about the feasibility of South Korea’s investment commitments, warning that rebuilding U.S. shipbuilding capacity is a long and challenging process. Lars Jensen, CEO of maritime consultancy Vespucci Maritime, stated that announcing a large investment figure over an unspecified period is easy, but implementation is another matter. Zhan Debin, Director of the Center for Korean Peninsula Studies at Shanghai University of International Business and Economics, told the Global Times on the 17th that U.S.-South Korea shipbuilding cooperation faces several major constraints, including U.S. legal red lines, domestic political resistance, and mismatched industrial structures.
According to South Korea’s JoongAng Ilbo, the U.S. Congress has proposed three bills to support “MASGA,” including the Ensuring Naval Readiness Act, the Allied Shipbuilding Partnership Act, and the American Shipbuilding Act. However, apart from the Allied Shipbuilding Partnership Act, which suggests relaxing restrictions on allies like South Korea and Japan, the other bills have yet to enter substantive review. A South Korean shipbuilding industry insider said, “The South Korean government pledged $150 billion, but if the U.S. does not relax regulations, South Korean companies may bear the brunt of investment pressure alone.” Lee Shin-hyung, a professor at Seoul National University, bluntly stated, “U.S. politicians must consider union positions, so advancing these bills will take more time.”
“While ‘MASGA’ has strategic logic, it faces significant political resistance in the U.S.,” The Diplomat noted. U.S. shipyard operators and unions have historically resisted foreign involvement, fearing competition and job losses. Protectionists in Congress may also seek measures to limit the scope of cooperation.
Additionally, the U.S. shipbuilding industry has long faced internal challenges. NPR reported that Trump’s vision of making the U.S. a great shipbuilding nation confronts a series of hurdles. Achieving this goal would require rebuilding the entire industry from scratch. Currently, U.S. shipbuilding lags far behind in technology and infrastructure. William Henagan, an industrial policy expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, said the U.S. has about 150 shipyards, all operating at full capacity. Building new shipyards or upgrading existing ones would require massive investments.
Regarding talent, Lyle Goldstein, Director of Asia Studies at the U.S. think tank Defense Priorities, said the U.S. severely lacks skilled shipbuilders, while China is rapidly training ship design talent. “They [China] are training talent at 100 times or more our rate.” The report concluded that turning the vision of “making the U.S. a shipbuilding powerhouse” into reality may be as challenging as building the ships themselves.
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