South Korea’s largest shipbuilder, HD Hyundai Group, has inked a deal with India’s state-owned Cochin Shipyard Ltd. (CSL), marking a strategic step to grow its presence in emerging shipbuilding markets. The memorandum of understanding, signed on Sunday, sees the two shipbuilding giants join forces to collaborate on vessel design, technical cooperation, equipment sourcing, and advanced workforce training programs.

The partnership will also involve joint exploration of shipbuilding opportunities in India and beyond, aligning with New Delhi’s ambitions to become one of the world’s top 10 shipbuilding nations. 

Cochin Shipyard, based in the southern state of Kerala, is India’s largest public sector yard and is majority owned by the government. 

“Based on our accumulated technical expertise and experience, we will help Cochin Shipyard boost its global competitiveness while also pursuing shared growth with Korean equipment suppliers,” HD Hyundai said in a statement.

The deal is the latest in a string of overseas ventures for HD Hyundai. The group has yard partnerships in Vietnam, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and has recently signed up to work with shipbuilders in the US.