Hanwha Group to Invest $71.8 mn in Philly Shipyard

Photo: Philly Shipyard

Hanwha Group is set to invest $71.8 million in Philly Shipyard, which the South Korean business conglomerate acquired in 2024. It plans to transform the facility into a high-tech shipyard capable of building 10 vessels annually, generating $4 billion in revenue by 2035.This is also part of Hanwha Group’s plans to establish a strong presence in the US market. It wants to construct liquified natural gas (LNG) carriers and if it continues with its plan, Philly Shipyard will emerge as the first US shipyard in decades to build LNG carriers. 
Through the $71.8 million investment, Hanwha Group will enhance production efficiency, upgrade the dock and implement automation systems throughout the shipbuilding process. At a site visit event at Philly Shipyard on May 19, the group revealed its plans to grow the shipyard’s revenue from $368 million in 2024 to $4 billion by 2035. 

Hanwha Group LNG Carriers 
The Philly Shipyard will be transformed into a mid-to-large-sized shipbuilder. The shipyard specializes in 2,600 – 3,600 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) container ships and crude oil tankers. According to a report, the Philly Shipyard is undergoing process optimization and upgrades to boost output at Dock No. 4 from the current one to four vessels annually. And the yard, which operates Docks 4 and 5 out of its five drydocks, will reactivate Dock No. 5 as it is currently being used as a quay. It will be refurbished for full production.An official with Hanwha Group highlighted that the US government’s top priorities include fostering the domestic construction of high-value vessels such as LNG carriers. He said they are confident about constructing LNG carriers as Hanwha Ocean specializes in LNG shipbuilding. 

Boost Productivity 
Choi Kwang-sik, an analyst at Daol Investment & Securities, said Philly Shipyard plans to boost productivity by addressing bottlenecks in its operations, including expanding its painting facility to eliminate process delays. He asserted that Hanwha Ocean plans to venture into the shipbuilding block supply market in the US as well. 
“Newbuild prices in the US are more than three times higher than in South Korea. Even after factoring in 1.5 times higher labour costs and lower productivity, the conditions remain favourable for generating solid profits.”South Korean industries are looking at tapping into the US market.

On May 19, the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) recommended the Korean government and shipbuilders to adopt vessel-specific strategies to capture emerging opportunities from the US fleet expansion plan – expected to generate orders for up to 448 ships by 2037.The strategies to be adopted include localizing LNG carrier production in the United States; targeting transport, support and amphibious ships for the US Navy’s newbuild program and easing controls on technology transfer. 

Source : Seanews   Nandika Chand