April 9 2026

This approach should free up dock capacity for other orders

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (South Korea) has introduced a new approach to shipbuilding based on the ‘distributed shipyard’ principle. For a 157,000-ton tanker, the company used a “halves” construction method, which was then joined together.

The 168-meter-long bow section of the vessel was manufactured by HSG Sungdong Shipbuilding at its facility in Tongyeong. After completion, it was towed to Ulsan for coupling with the 102-meter-long stern section. Piping and wiring are scheduled to be completed within the next month, with delivery of the vessel to the customer scheduled for July.

Representatives of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries explained that this approach allows them to build only the most technologically intensive part of the vessel—the stern, where the engine room is located—at their own shipyard in Ulsan. The less demanding bow section, which requires significant labor and space, is outsourced to HSG Sungdong.

This approach also frees up the company’s docking capacity and allows for the parallel construction and assembly of other vessels, which is especially important now that the order book of South Korean shipbuilders has grown significantly.

Source: https://portnews.ru/news/390112/