South Korean mid-sized shipyard HJ Shipbuilding & Construction (formerly HANJIN Heavy Industries & Construction (HHIC)) announced on January 16 that it has signed a ship maintenance service agreement (MSRA) with the U.S. Navy. The agreement is valid from January 23, 2026, to January 22, 2031.
MSRA is a ship maintenance qualification certified by the U.S. Navy. Contracted shipyards can participate in maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) projects for all major U.S. Navy vessels, including logistics support ships, combat vessels and frigates.
Successfully signing the MSRA agreement means that HJ Shipbuilding & Construction can fully participate in the U.S. Navy’s main vessel MRO projects, a market with an average annual size of 20 trillion Korean won over the next five years.
Several days before the signing of the agreement, HJ Shipbuilding & Construction underwent a port security assessment by security experts from the U.S. Naval Criminal Investigative Service at its shipyard in Yeongdo, Busan, which was the final hurdle before the MSRA agreement could be finalized.
As early as December 2025, HJ Shipbuilding & Construction secured a mid-life maintenance contract for the U.S. Navy’s 40,000-ton logistics support ship, the USNS Amelia Earhart, becoming the third South Korean shipyard, after Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, to win a U.S. Navy project.
It is reported that the U.S. Navy’s MRO program for logistics support ships can proceed without MSRA certification. The USNS Amelia Earhart entered Yeongdo Shipyard on the 12th and will be delivered to the U.S. Navy in March following maintenance operations.