HD Hyundai, South Korea’s largest shipbuilding group, has made significant progress in expanding its shipbuilding operations in the Philippines: HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines (HHIP), a wholly-owned shipbuilding subsidiary established in 2024, has reached a key milestone in its shipbuilding project, with the shipyard set to begin full-scale operations in the fourth quarter of 2025.
Recently, the 115,000 DWT LR2-class product tanker “Orion Jade”, built by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines, was launched. This is one of the largest vessels the shipyard is currently capable of building.
The “Orion Jade”, with a total length of 250 meters, began construction in September 2025. It is the first vessel of a series of four 115,000 DWT LR2 product tankers ordered by South Korean shipowner Cido Shipping from HD Hyundai in December 2024.
In addition, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines will build four 115,000 DWT LR2 product tankers for Nisshin Shipping, with delivery of this new batch of vessels scheduled for 2027 and 2028.
It is understood that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines is a wholly-owned shipbuilding subsidiary established in the Philippines in 2024 by HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE). It officially began operations in the fourth quarter of 2025, conducting its shipbuilding operations by leasing Dry Dock No. 1 at the Subic Shipyard in the Philippines.
The “Orion Jade” launched by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines, is also the first new vessel built at the Subic Shipyard since it ceased production in 2019, marking the shipyard’s full-scale resumption of shipbuilding after a seven-year hiatus.
Records show that the Subic Shipyard was established in 2006 by the South Korean shipbuilder formerly known as HANJIN Heavy Industries & Construction (now HJ Heavy Industries). It grew to become one of the world’s top five shipyards and was the largest shipyard in Southeast Asia at the time in terms of land area. Located on the northern shore of Subic Bay, the shipyard primarily builds large container ships, gas carriers, and oil tankers. It delivered its first newly built vessel in 2008, and at its peak, the shipyard employed over 20,000 people.
Following a prolonged downturn in the shipbuilding industry, HANJIN Heavy Industries & Construction Philippines defaulted on a $1.3 billion loan in 2019, prompting the Subic Shipyard to suspend operations and file for bankruptcy. In April 2022, the U.S. private equity firm Cerberus acquired the Subic Shipyard for $300 million with a 50-year lease and began revitalizing its operations—three years after the shipyard had filed for bankruptcy.
In 2025, HD KSOE launched its shipbuilding operations by leasing Dry Dock No. 1 at the former Subic Shipyard for a 10-year term. The shipyard has now become an integral part of HD Hyundai’s expansion of its shipbuilding base in Southeast Asia.
HD KSOE’s preliminary plan for HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines is to achieve an annual shipbuilding capacity of 10 vessels within the next three to five years, primarily constructing bulk carriers and product tankers, and to increase its workforce to 5,000 employees.
It is worth noting that recent market rumors suggest Cido Shipping will place an order with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Philippines for four 300,000 DWT Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), with a total construction cost of approximately $520 million. Delivery is expected between 2029 and 2030. However, this order has not yet been officially confirmed.