By Berk Kutay Gokmen
ISTANBUL (AA) - Major South Korean shipbuilders have formed a joint task force to support the government's collaboration with the US on a recently agreed large-scale investment in Washington's shipbuilding sector, Seoul-based Yonhap News reported Sunday.
The nation's top three shipbuilders -- HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Hanwha Ocean Co. and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. -- along with the Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Association, launched the task force and held an inaugural meeting, according to company officials.
The group will back the “Make American Shipbuilding Great Again” (MASGA) initiative, through which the South Korean government has pledged a $150 billion investment.
It is part of a broader $350 billion investment package aimed at securing Washington’s agreement to reduce reciprocal tariffs on South Korean imports from 25% to 15%.
“There will be various ways to implement the Korea-US shipbuilding cooperation, and the TF (task force) aims to support and facilitate those efforts,” said an official. “The industry is working together with the government for the MASGA project through this task force.”
The $150 billion represents the largest single-industry fund in the package and is designed mainly to support Korean shipbuilders’ US operations through public financing.
MASGA includes plans to build shipyards in the US, train workers, restore supply chains, construct American ships and collaborate on maintenance, repair and overhaul projects, according to Seoul.
The task force will ramp up discussions starting in August after the industry's summer break.