HD Hyundai, Indian government explore deeper partnership in shipbuilding and maritime technology

HD Hyundai has moved to strengthen its strategic ties with India as the country advances ambitious plans to scale up shipbuilding and expand its commercial fleet. The Korean shipbuilding major announced that Chairman Chung Ki-sun met with India’s Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on November 13 at the company’s Global R&D Center in Pangyo to discuss expanded cooperation across shipbuilding, technology, and maritime infrastructure.

The high-level meeting brought together senior government and industry leaders from both sides, including Indian Ambassador to Korea Gurjit Singh, officials from India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, as well as heads of major state-owned enterprises such as ONGC Chairman Arun Kumar Singh and Cochin Shipyard Chairman Madhu Nair.

During the visit, the Indian delegation received briefings on HD Hyundai’s advanced ship design capabilities, digital shipyard systems, and smart manufacturing technologies. Discussions covered collaboration opportunities to support India’s goals in fleet modernisation, shipyard productivity enhancement, and technology transfer.

HD Hyundai said the visit aligns closely with India’s “Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047”, an ambitious long-term agenda that seeks to transform the country into a top-five global shipbuilding nation. India aims to increase its commercial fleet from 1,500 to 2,500 vessels and enhance domestic manufacturing competitiveness across shipbuilding, ports, shipping, and offshore infrastructure. To achieve this, the government plans to invest around $24 billion, alongside recently announced incentives worth $8 billion to spur newbuilding projects.

The two sides also reviewed progress under the MoU signed earlier this year between HD Hyundai and Cochin Shipyard, which covers design and procurement support, productivity improvement, human capital development, and cooperation on India’s large-scale naval landing ship programme valued at ₩13 trillion.

Chairman Chung reaffirmed HD Hyundai’s commitment to partnering with India’s maritime transformation, stating that the company aims to be “India’s most trusted partner” in scaling up its shipbuilding capacity. Minister Puri welcomed the collaboration, saying HD Hyundai would play a “key role” in supporting India’s maritime ambitions and called for regular engagements to deepen cooperation.

As part of the ongoing exchange, the Indian delegation will visit HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ Ulsan Shipyard on November 14 to tour commercial and special vessel facilities and observe shipbuilding operations first-hand.