Marcos welcomed officials from HD Hyundai and US investment firm Cerebus to the presidential palace yesterday to discuss how to revitalise a shipyard complex Cerebus bought at Subic Bay, which the Korean company has come onboard as an investor.
HD Hyundai has committed to invest around $550m over the course of 10 years with an initial focus on the development of offshore wind platforms with Marcos hopeful the Korean company may also build ships in Subic as well. HD Hyundai has one other overseas yard investment, Hyundai Vietnam Shipbuilding.
Marcos said HD Hyundai’s arrival gave the Philippines a “fresh start” and a “strong foundation” for shipbuilding.
“We have established our position as the largest source of competent and able seafarers in the world. The next logical step for us is to ensure that the ships run by Filipinos can also be made by Filipinos,” said Marcos
Cerberus bought the defunct Hanjin Subic Bay shipyard in 2022, one of the largest shipbuilding bases in Southeast Asia, located at a former US navy base to the north of the capital, Manila.
The Philippines had been seeking a buyer for the yard for years after Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction defaulted on loans, forcing the yard’s shuttering in 2019.
The huge yard in Subic Bay delivered its first ship in 2008 and is capable of building the largest ships afloat having delivered a 20,000 teu ship and a series of VLCCs in the past.
