U.S. Inspects Hanwha Ocean for Third Straight Month as MASGA Looms

[Financial News] U.S. representatives have inspected Korean shipyards, including Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd., for three consecutive months, from August through this month. There are expectations that U.S.-Korea shipbuilding cooperation, known as Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA), will take concrete shape around the turn of the year.
Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. said on the 8th that U.S. Senator Dave McCormick had visited its Geoje shipyard the previous day. Senator McCormick is a member of the ruling Republican Party and represents Pennsylvania, where Hanwha Philly Shipyard is located.
Senator McCormick boarded the Pyeongtaek, the latest 3,600-ton-displacement Ulsan-class frigate Batch-III (Chungnam-class) under construction at the Geoje shipyard, to examine its naval technology. George Lemore, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of war for East Asia, who visited the Geoje shipyard last month, also reportedly toured the Pyeongtaek's construction site. The U.S. military is considering buying either a Chungnam-class frigate or a Japanese Mogami-class frigate. Hopes are growing that the Chungnam class is more likely to be selected, given that the U.S. government and Senate have inspected it in succession.
In August, Richard Breckenridge, a senior adviser for shipbuilding at the U.S. Department of the Navy, also toured the facilities of Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd., HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and SK Oceanplant.<See page 17 of our September 2, 2026, edition>The visit by a key U.S. military shipbuilding official, organized by South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration, is seen as a sign that a contract to build new U.S. warships may be imminent. Hanwha Philly Shipyard already won a contract from the U.S. Maritime Administration in July for an at-sea missile test instrumentation vessel (MRIV).
Senator McCormick said, "I was deeply impressed by Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd.'s high-level capabilities in every area, including technology, productivity, quality and safety," adding, "I expect Hanwha Philly Shipyard to make a significant contribution to the development of Philadelphia's shipbuilding industry."
U.S. inspections are continuing despite sluggish discussions on a U.S.-Korea MASGA agreement because companies from the two countries have already joined forces. Through the U.S.-Korea Shipbuilding Cooperation Center, which opened in July, shipbuilding companies from both countries are building a framework for cooperation in design, development, workforce training and supply chains. For example, Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. is jointly designing a global strategic transport ship with Leidos Gibbs & Cox, a U.S. naval vessel design specialist, while Hanwha Philly Shipyard and Delaware County Community College are training shipbuilding workers together.
Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. President Jung In-sub, who heads its Management Support Office, said, "We are working to expand production capacity, particularly in Pennsylvania, to help rebuild the U.S. shipbuilding industry," adding, "We will broaden our cooperation with local U.S. partners and lead the shared growth of the U.S. and Korean shipbuilding industries."
[email protected] Kim Yun-ho Reporter