The United States is sounding out Korean shipbuilders on their warship construction and design capabilities, bringing cooperation between the two countries into clearer view.
The U.S. Department of Defense (Department of War) and the U.S. Navy recently sent requests for information (RFI) on combat ships and oilers to Korean shipbuilders, according to defense industry sources on the 9th.
Under the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), an RFI is a market research procedure through which the government gathers information on pricing, delivery terms and other factors for the purpose of program planning.
This marks the first time the U.S. side has inquired about Korean shipbuilders' warship capabilities in the form of an RFI since President Donald Trump took office and discussions on MASGA (Make American Shipbuilding Great Again), the Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation initiative, gained momentum.
In response, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (329180.KS) and Hanwha Ocean (042660.KS) submitted their combat ship design and construction capabilities to the U.S. Department of Defense. For the RFI on medium-sized oilers, three companies, including Samsung Heavy Industries (010140.KS), sent responses. Hanwha (000880.KS) acquired the Philly Shipyard in Pennsylvania and is in the process of obtaining a license to build combat ships. HD Hyundai (267250.KS) and Samsung Heavy Industries have established partnerships with local shipyards, Huntington Ingalls and General Dynamics NASSCO, respectively.
The RFI draws attention as it coincides with President Trump's recent mention of a specific number of warships to be built. President Lee Jae-myung previously disclosed that at the Group of Seven (G7) summit last month, President Trump asked, "Can you quickly build 10 American warships?" Industry observers said the United States has moved beyond messaging at the presidential level and begun concrete working-level reviews through the Department of Defense and the Navy.
Some analysts predict that the easing of related laws and regulations for U.S. warship construction will begin. Currently, the construction of U.S. naval vessels at foreign shipyards is blocked by the Byrnes-Tollefson Amendment.
Last year, the two countries agreed to allocate $150 billion (approximately 225.105 trillion won) of the $350 billion (approximately 525.245 trillion won) in Korean investment in the United States to shipbuilding cooperation.
