Recently, after securing orders for 12 naval vessels and expanding its civilian shipbuilding business in Subic Bay, South Korean shipbuilding group HD Hyundai is further deepening its shipbuilding cooperation with the Philippines.

On September 7, HD Hyundai Group Chairman Chung Ki-sun met with Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr. in Seoul. The two sides discussed expanding cooperation in shipbuilding, modernizing the Philippine Navy, and developing the Philippines’ domestic shipbuilding industry.

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ cooperation with the Philippine Navy began with a frigate contract in 2016. Since then, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has won orders for a total of 12 naval vessels, including two frigates signed in 2016, two corvettes ordered in 2021, six offshore patrol vessels contracted in 2022, and two additional 3,200-ton frigates in December 2025. To date, six frigates have been delivered.

The latest two frigates ordered will be delivered by 2029 under the Philippine Navy’s “Horizon 3” modernization program. The contract signed in December 2025 is worth US$578 million.

The cooperation also extends to civilian shipbuilding in Subic Bay. HD Hyundai began construction of its first civilian ship there in September 2025 and launched the 115,000-DWT product tanker *Orion Jade* in July 2026.

*Orion Jade* is the first of four vessels ordered by an Asian shipping company and is scheduled for delivery in 2027. HD Hyundai plans to gradually increase the capacity of its Subic Bay base as business progresses.

Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr. said that cooperation with HD Hyundai is of strategic significance to the modernization of the Philippine Navy and the revitalization of the country’s shipbuilding industry. Chung Ki-sun said HD Hyundai will seek long-term industrial cooperation beyond civilian and naval shipbuilding.