Ministry of Trade Industry and Resources

On June 25, 2026, the Korea–U.S. Strategic Investment Corporation (KUIC), policy finance institutions, and three major Korean shipbuilders signed an MoU to implement USD 150 billion in Korea–U.S. shipbuilding cooperation investment under the Korea–U.S. Strategic Investment MoU signed on November 14, 2025. The policy finance institutions are the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM), Korea Development Bank (KDB), Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-SURE), and Korea Ocean Business Corporation (KOBC), and the shipbuilders are HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Samsung Heavy Industries, and Hanwha Ocean.

Under the MoU, the parties will form a consultative body for Korea–U.S. shipbuilding cooperation investment. The body will share information, identify project opportunities, and coordinate policy financing. KEXIM will serve as the secretariat, handle internal and external communications, and track project progress.

The signing ceremony was held at KEXIM in Yeouido, Seoul. Koo Yun-cheol, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy (MOFE); Kwon Dae-young, Vice Chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC); and Park Dong-il, Director General for Industrial Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources (MOTIR, Minister JK Kim), attended the ceremony to mark the first step in implementing the shipbuilding cooperation investment.

In his remarks, Deputy Prime Minister Koo described the shipbuilding cooperation investment as “one of the two pillars of Korea–U.S. strategic investment, along with investment in the U.S.” He said, “This mutually beneficial investment will allow Korea’s world-class shipbuilders to help rebuild the U.S. shipbuilding industry. It will also create new orders and market opportunities across Korea’s shipbuilding ecosystem, including major shipbuilders, small and medium-sized shipbuilders, and equipment suppliers.”

Deputy Prime Minister Koo also asked KUIC and participating policy finance institutions to prepare financing plans that ensure sufficient, timely funding. He called for ways to share risks and early-stage investment uncertainties that would be difficult for individual companies to bear alone. He also asked major Korean shipbuilders to identify projects that can deliver mutually beneficial outcomes for both countries’ shipbuilding industries and create opportunities for Korean small and medium-sized shipbuilders and equipment suppliers to join Team Korea.

FSC Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young emphasized, "Through the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation investment, Korea's shipbuilding industry has gained a prime opportunity to demonstrate its world-class capabilities," adding, "Building on close cooperation among the newly established KUIC, policy finance institutions, and the private financial sector, we will actively ensure that the necessary financing is provided without disruption."

Director General Park said, “MASGA is K-shipbuilding’s first strategic overseas expansion project. The U.S. market is already showing encouraging signs of demand for Korean shipbuilders. Timely financial support is essential to turn these opportunities into results.” He expressed hope that the MoU would help advance the MASGA project and open a new phase of growth for Korea’s shipbuilding industry, and asked policy finance institutions to coordinate closely to support Korean companies’ smooth entry into the U.S. market.

KUIC President Park Jong-won said, "Shipbuilding cooperation investment in the U.S. is one of the core areas of Korea-U.S. strategic investment and a key mission for KUIC's implementation of strategic investment," adding, "We will work closely with policy finance institutions to actively support our shipbuilding industry's investment in the U.S. and its vessel orders."

KEXIM President Hwang Ki-yeon said, "As Korea's leading ship-finance institution, KEXIM will draw on the expertise and know-how it has accumulated to actively support the government's implementation of the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation investment," adding, "Building on this MoU, we will work closely with the participating institutions and companies in the consultative body to produce results, so that K-shipbuilding can successfully enter the U.S. shipbuilding market and secure new growth engines."

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries CEO Lee Sang-kyun said, "It is most important that Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation leads to substantive results," noting, "This cooperation should develop into a framework that drives both the growth of Korea's shipbuilding industry and the rebuilding of the U.S. shipbuilding base." He added, "Our shipbuilding industry will draw on its world-class technological capabilities to identify a range of investment opportunities with profitability and feasibility, and we hope the government will prepare multifaceted support measures so that we can together create a new turning point in Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation."