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The battle between HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (329180) and China's Ningbo Xinle Shipyard for the right to operate Africa's largest shipyard is drawing the attention of the global shipbuilding industry. With the winner of the shipyard bid to be decided next month, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, if selected, would secure its first local foothold for meeting European and African vessel demand.
According to industry sources on the 13th, a consortium that includes HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is in final-stage negotiations with Morocco's National Ports Agency (ANP) over the bid for operating rights of the Casablanca shipyard. The project guarantees exclusive operating rights of the Casablanca shipyard for the next 30 years, with investment reaching at least $300 million (about 450 billion won). The ANP has been conducting the bid since last year and is known to be set to announce the final result in early August.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is competing against Chinese and Italian shipbuilders that were also shortlisted for the Casablanca shipyard operating rights bid. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries formed a consortium with Moroccan engineering firm Somagec and Turkish shipbuilder Kuzey Star, laying the groundwork for the local partnership emphasized by the Moroccan government. In response, Ningbo Xinle also joined hands with Moroccan marine and energy firm Radi Holding and Spanish shipbuilder Marina Meridional.
The Moroccan government's top priority is to develop the Casablanca shipyard into Africa's largest shipbuilding base through massive capital investment. For now, the HD Hyundai Heavy Industries consortium—equipped with leading shipbuilding technology and know-how in operating overseas shipyards—is cited as the strongest candidate. Earlier, a delegation led by Nizar Baraka, Morocco's Minister of Equipment and Water, visited HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' Ulsan shipyard to directly verify its shipbuilding capabilities.
However, rivals Ningbo Xinle and Italy's San Giorgio del Porto are also actively promoting their capabilities to win the Casablanca shipyard operating rights. Ningbo Xinle is conducting active order-winning activities targeting European shipowners. In an official statement, Ningbo Xinle proposed to make the Casablanca shipyard a comprehensive base capable of performing the full cycle of operations, from newbuilding to maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO), and ship dismantling and recycling. San Giorgio del Porto, meanwhile, touts itself as having Europe's highest-level ship repair and conversion technology and a wide network of European port infrastructure.
Behind these companies' efforts to acquire the Casablanca shipyard operating rights lies its geographical advantage as a maritime strategic point at the northwest tip of Africa. The Port of Casablanca is located at a central junction of maritime routes connecting Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
Accordingly, it is assessed as the most suitable base for responding to European nations' moves to overhaul their naval power and the surging newbuilding demand in the Middle East and Africa. It is also expected to work advantageously in securing orders from the Moroccan government, which is pushing to expand its national merchant fleet. Morocco has previously set a goal of securing 100 merchant vessels (currently 16) by 2040.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries plans to secure the Casablanca shipyard operating rights and make Morocco a key base for tapping the European and African markets. In particular, in Europe, demand for building and converting high-value eco-friendly vessels is surging as environmental regulations tighten. If local construction is carried out through the Casablanca shipyard, securing cost competitiveness is expected to also provide the ability to counter the low-price offensive of Chinese rivals.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is pursuing a strategy of expanding overseas production bases to strengthen local responsiveness and order-winning capabilities. It has currently built shipyards in Vietnam and the Philippines to serve the Asia-Pacific region and is pushing to establish a new shipyard in India as well. In the United States, it is strengthening cooperation with major local shipbuilders including Huntington Ingalls, and in South America, where maritime defense demand is growing, it is raising the level of cooperation by pursuing a joint construction project with Peru's state-run SIMA shipyard.
