HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (HHI; Korean: HD현대중공업; RR: Eichidi Hyeondae Junggongeop) is the world's largest shipbuilding company and a major heavy equipment manufacturer.[3][4] Its headquarters are in Ulsan, South Korea.
HHI was founded in 1972 by Chung Ju-yung as a division of the Hyundai Group, and in 1974, completed building its first ships.[5] In 2002, the company was spun-off from its parent company.[6] HHI has four core business divisions: Shipbuilding, Offshore & Engineering, Industrial Plant & Engineering, and Engine & Machinery. HHI also has five non-core related subsidiaries: Hyundai Electric & Energy Systems, Hyundai Construction Equipment, Hyundai Robotics, Hyundai Heavy Industries Green Energy, and Hyundai Global Service.[7]
The Hyundai Group started as a small South Korean construction firm in 1947, headed by its founder, Korean entrepreneur Chung Ju-yung.[8] Another widely known and closely related Korean company, the Hyundai Motor Company, was founded in 1967, five years prior to the founding of the Heavy Industry Group. The motor company was also founded by Chung. The company has a partnership with Capital Product Partners to create four specialized ships with equipment for ocean-based carbon capture and storage to be delivered in 2025 and 2026 and at a cost of $300 million.[9]
The name is an informal romanisation of the Korean 현대 (hyeondae) meaning "contemporary" or "modern", which was Chung's vision for the group of companies that he founded.
On 11 July 2024, Hyundai Heavy Industries became the first Korean shipbuilder to sign a master ship repair agreement (MSRA) with Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP), qualifying to participate in the U.S. Navy's MRO business.[10]