HD HHI submits bid for 7 trillion won next-gen destroyer project

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) submitted a bid for the Korea Destroyer Next Generation (KDDX) program, ending two weeks of speculation about whether the company would participate after withdrawing from the first tender.

The company is now set to compete with Hanwha Ocean for the 7 trillion won ($4.66 billion) project to build six 6,000-ton destroyers in the second bidding after the first was delayed when HD HHI declined to register by the May 14 deadline.

"HD Hyundai Heavy participated in the bid based on its top-tier shipbuilding capabilities, with the aim of contributing to the strengthening of the Korean Navy and the advancement of the national defense industry," the company said in a statement. "As Korea's leading naval shipbuilder, we will do our best with a responsible approach until the end to ensure the success of the KDDX program."

The company emphasized its role as the basic design contractor for the program, arguing that its existing technical foundation positions it to deliver on what it described as "an extremely difficult project" requiring fully domestic development of the hull, combat system and integrated mast, along with Korea's first integrated electric propulsion system.

Hanwha Ocean also completed its bid registration for the KDDX program on Wednesday.

"As a leading naval shipbuilder at the forefront of Korea’s maritime defense industry, Hanwha Ocean will devote its full technological capabilities to ensure the timely deployment of the KDDX," the company said.

HD HHI also escalated its legal challenge against the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), simultaneously filing a court injunction on Wednesday seeking to block the extension of a security demerit. 

The penalty dates back to the conviction of nine HD HHI employees for photographing and leaking Hanwha Ocean's KDDX concept design materials between 2012 and 2015.

DAPA initially applied a 1.8-point demerit through Nov. 18, 2025, treating the leaks as a single security incident. In September of last year, the agency reversed course and decided to treat the November 2022 conviction of eight employees and the December 2023 conviction of another employee as separate incidents, adding a new 1.2-point demerit period extending through Dec. 6 this year.

"DAPA's evaluation of the basic design proposal submitted for the recent ocean surveillance ship bidding process confirmed that the security-related point deduction had been improperly extended without a legal basis," HD HHI said of the injunction request.

The deadline for the second round of bidding is Thursday, with a prebid briefing held on Tuesday at DAPA's offices in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi.

BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]