On March 19, Hanwha Ocean announced that it had signed a “Strategic Cooperation Agreement for Business Operations in Greece” with ONEX Shipyards & Technologies Group (ONEX), Greece’s largest shipbuilding and defense company.
Under the agreement, the two sides will enter into an exclusive partnership to jointly participate in equipment procurement programs, including projects for the Hellenic Coast Guard and the Navy’s submarine program. In the medium to long term, the two sides will seek to collaborate on a project-by-project basis in third countries, including regions surrounding Greece such as the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.
A Hanwha Ocean representative stated, “Through exclusive partnerships with major local shipyards, the company will steadily enter the local market and actively participate in upcoming projects assigned by the Greek Coast Guard and Navy.”
According to available information, ONEX is a core pillar of the Greek shipbuilding industry, operating two modern shipyards in Syros and Elefsina, and owning its own port facilities. The group’s total planned investment in Greece exceeds €650 million. ONEX is a member of the Hellenic Ports Association (E.LIM.E.) and plans to develop a comprehensive industrial hub in the Eastern Mediterranean, integrating shipbuilding, port operations, energy, and logistics.
It is understood that ONEX took over the Elefsina shipyard in 2019 with the plan to develop it into one of the largest shipyards in Greece, thereby restarting shipbuilding operations to serve the Greek Navy and merchant vessels. In December 2025, the Elefsina shipyard undertook a contract for 2+2 new multi-purpose tugboats, marking Greece’s first merchant vessel order in decades, with a total cost of approximately €20 million.