

Chung Kisun, vice chairman of HD Hyundai Group, was appointed its chairman on Friday, marking a generational shift at the family-run South Korean shipbuilding conglomerate.
Chung, 43, is the eldest son of HD Hyundai’s former Chairman Chung Mong-joon, who is the sixth-son of the late Hyundai Group founder Chung Ju-yung.
The third-generation leader is taking helm of the country’s eighth-largest business group, which oversees HD Hyundai Co., HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co., HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and HD Hyundai Oilbank Co.
EXPANSION INTO THE US NAVAL SHIP MARKET
Under his leadership, the top-ranked shipbuilder is expected to accelerate its expansion into the US defense shipbuilding market, aiming to capitalize on the Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA) initiative.
According to sources familiar with HD Hyundai, the company is pursuing a US shipyard acquisition, while setting up a MASGA-dedicated fund.
In its first major step to tap into the MASGA project, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. is set to merge with HD Hyundai Mipo Co.
Their combination is aimed at transforming Mipo’s docks into a dedicated base for military vessel production, leveraging HD Hyundai Heavy’s warship construction capabilities.
In August, the group has built its toehold in the US defense shipbuilding industry, securing its first-ever maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) contract for a US Navy vessel.
The junior Chung is also tasked with restructuring the group’s machinery manufacturing units amid the prolonged downturn in the domestic construction industry.
In 2021, he led the acquisition of Doosan Infracore, rebranded HD Hyundai Infracore Co., a construction machinery manufacturer. It is set to merge with HD Hyundai Construction Equipment in 2026.
Since joining HD Hyundai’s finance division in 2009, the Stanford MBA spearheaded the establishment of HD Hyundai Marine Solution Co., in 2016.
The shipbuilding parts maker is currently valued at 10 trillion won ($7 billion) as of Friday, compared with the holding firm HD Hyundai’s market capitalization of 13 trillion won.
Chung earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Yonsei University.
Source: The Korea Economic Daily