SEOUL, January 26 (AJP) - Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun is joining a special envoy team to support South Korea’s bid for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project, government and industry officials said on Monday.
Chung will depart for Canada later in the day to back the government-led effort, the officials said.
A defense-industry envoy team, including Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik and Industry Minister Kim Jeong-gwan, will also leave for Canada on Monday to promote South Korea’s bid for the project.
The government requested participation from major industrial groups including Hyundai Motor Group, Hanwha Group, HD Hyundai and Korean Air. Chung will be joined by Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan and Ju Won-ho, head of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ naval and medium-sized ship business division.
The CPSP is a major defense procurement program to build up to 12 diesel-powered submarines. Construction costs are estimated at up to 20 trillion won ($15 billion), while the total value of the project could reach as much as 60 trillion won when including 30 years of maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), according to officials.
A consortium formed by Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has been shortlisted alongside Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) and is competing in the final stage of the tender. A decision is expected in June.
Canada has been seeking industrial offsets as part of the procurement, including investment and other forms of compensation from potential suppliers in South Korea and Germany. Offsets typically involve arrangements such as technology transfers, local production or export opportunities for components as part of major defense contracts.
* This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP.
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