HD Hyundai Bets on the Philippine Market, Raising the Possibility of Building Warships There After Commercial Vessels

사진 확대 A launch ceremony for the Orion Jade at the Subic shipyard in the Philippines. [Captured from the Facebook page of the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) of the Philippines]

HD Hyundai’s push into the Philippine market is expanding beyond simple warship exports to production using local shipyards. Building on its track record of supplying warships to the Philippine Navy on multiple occasions, the company is drawing attention from the industry over whether it could eventually build warships locally at the request of the Philippine side.

According to the shipbuilding industry and the Philippine Department of Finance on the 14th, the Subic shipyard operated by HD Hyundai in the Philippines took delivery of the 115,000-DWT crude oil and oil product carrier Orion Jade on the 28th of last month. The vessel is a large commercial ship measuring 250 meters in length, 42 meters in width, and 21 meters in depth, and it is the first completed ship out of a total order of four.

This launch means more than simply building one commercial vessel. After leasing part of the site of the Subic shipyard built in 2006 by HJ Shipbuilding & Construction, formerly Hanjin Heavy Industries, in 2024, HD Hyundai established shipbuilding infrastructure there. In the process, it not only repaired facilities but also created more than 4,000 jobs in the area.

Once the shipyard begins full-scale operations, local employment is expected to double. HD Hyundai is also building the remaining three vessels in the order book sequentially at the Subic shipyard. Industry observers say that, combined with the company’s long-standing cooperation with the Philippine Navy, this could pave the way for HD Hyundai to build warships locally as well.

사진 확대 Rajah Sulayman, the first of six offshore patrol vessels ordered by the Philippine Navy from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. [Provided by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries]

HD Hyundai first established close ties with the Philippines in 2016. By participating in the Philippine Navy’s modernization program, it expanded its orders from two frigates to two corvettes and six offshore patrol vessels. At the end of last year, it also signed a contract for two additional 3,200-ton frigates, bringing the total number of ordered warships to 12.

The Philippine government is also said to view HD Hyundai’s investment in the Subic shipyard favorably. Frederick Go, the Philippine finance minister, recently said through the state-run Philippine News Agency (PNA), “We are grateful for strengthening our industrial capabilities and employing thousands of Filipinos.”

The shipbuilding industry sees HD Hyundai’s accumulated business history with the Philippine Navy and the local production base it has built through commercial ship construction as the company’s key advantage. While commercial shipbuilding does not automatically lead to warship construction contracts, the company is considered to have stronger fundamentals than its competitors.

Industry observers say the Philippine government could also benefit more from building warships domestically than from simply importing them, as it would create local jobs, build technological capabilities, and help develop the shipbuilding industry. HD Hyundai also said that maintenance, repair and overhaul work for warships and other vessels, which has so far been carried out in Ulsan Metropolitan City, could also be done locally in the Philippines.

Some in the industry also say that if HD Hyundai expands its facilities in the Philippines, they could eventually serve as a hub for maintenance, repair and overhaul work on U.S. Navy vessels. An HD Hyundai official said of the possibility of building warships at the Subic shipyard, “For now, we plan to focus on building the commercial vessels already under order.”

This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.