The South Korean government has asked the United States to create a shipbuilding-specific visa quota as a precondition for advancing MASGA, or Make American Shipbuilding Great Again, a $150 billion bilateral shipbuilding cooperation project. Seoul has concluded that expanding the production capacity of U.S. shipyards requires not only investment but also a pathway for skilled Korean workers to be employed there. The government also presented stable vessel order demand, financial incentives and eased rules on overseas shipbuilding as preconditions for its investment.
According to materials submitted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy to the office of Rep. Heo Sung-moo of the Democratic Party of Korea, a member of the National Assembly's Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee, the government is discussing investment implementation conditions, including a shipbuilding-specific visa quota, in working-level talks with the United States. The ministry has been explaining the preconditions that Washington must meet for Korea to carry out its investment. "We requested order demand from the U.S. side, joint construction including exemptions for overseas building, financial incentives and a shipbuilding-specific visa quota," the ministry said.
The shipbuilding-specific visa is separate from the professional visa, or E-4, that the government has been seeking to create with a quota of 15,000. A visa centered on professional occupations alone would not meet demand for the technical and skilled trades needed on shipyard floors, such as welding and piping. "The professional visa we had been pushing to expand and the technical and skilled workers needed at shipbuilding sites are different in nature," a ministry official said. "The priority is to create a visa pathway through which shipbuilding workers can go abroad." The size of the quota is expected to be discussed through a Korea-U.S. visa working group and other channels.
U.S. rules on vessel construction have also come up in the talks. The government is calling for changes to the Byrnes-Tollefson Amendment, which restricts overseas construction of U.S. Navy ships, and the Jones Act, which regulates cargo transport between U.S. ports. For joint Korea-U.S. shipbuilding research and development, a total of 155.7 billion won, consisting of 120 billion won in government funds and 35.7 billion won in private capital, is planned for eight projects over the next five years.
Behind the government's decision to make the deployment of skilled workers a condition of its investment is the chronic labor shortage in the U.S. shipbuilding industry. Even if large sums are poured into shipyard facilities, the shortage of technical workers essential to vessel construction, such as welders and pipefitters, places clear limits on raising production capacity. Because training new recruits into skilled workers alone takes three to five years, the government believes Korean technical workers must support vessel construction and the transfer of skills at U.S. shipyards.
According to a report released last year by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, all seven major shipbuilders that construct U.S. Navy vessels are struggling to recruit and retain skilled workers. The U.S. Department of Defense has estimated that 174,000 new workers will be needed over the next decade, including those filling vacancies left by retirements and job changes. The demand grows larger when commercial vessel construction is included. Global consulting firm McKinsey said in a report this year that the U.S. maritime industry will need 200,000 to 250,000 additional workers over the next 10 years.
Unlike the E-4, under which labor demand is spread across all industries, the shipbuilding-specific visa quota is focused on securing a stable supply of workers for the shipbuilding sector. If both visas are created, the move could also expand the overall number of professional and skilled-worker visas allocated to Korean nationals. With progress on the E-4 stalled, the plan is also seen as an attempt to secure a visa quota at least for shipbuilding.
The two visas may also differ in how they are applied. While the E-4 is aimed at a country-specific allocation, the shipbuilding-specific visa is being discussed as a framework that would grant exemptions on a project-by-project basis. The United States has previously eased work visa requirements for foreign workers deployed to military construction projects in Guam.
Demand for workers in U.S. shipbuilding grows larger still when commercial vessels are considered alongside naval ships. Global consulting firm McKinsey said in a report released this year that the U.S. maritime industry will need 200,000 to 250,000 additional workers over the next decade.
The workers U.S. shipyards need are not only professionals in design and research and development but also skilled tradespeople who can work on the shop floor in welding, piping and electrical work and pass their skills on to local workers. According to the GAO, it takes three to five years for a shipyard trades worker to reach full proficiency. Because hiring and training local workers alone cannot expand production capacity quickly, the government has concluded that a separate visa pathway is needed for skilled Korean workers to move into U.S. shipyards.
Korean shipbuilders are already expanding cooperation in the United States on technology transfer and workforce training. Samsung Heavy Industries is working to establish a training center with the U.S. firm Vigor Marine Group to develop local technical workers. Hanwha Ocean is introducing welding robot technology used at its Geoje shipyard to Philly Shipyard in the United States. According to Hanwha Group, artificial intelligence is used in 67% of indoor welding work at the Geoje shipyard, a share the company plans to raise to 100% by 2030.
Government-level support is also underway. The ministry opened a Korea-U.S. shipbuilding cooperation center in Washington in July this year and is providing consulting on productivity improvement at local shipyards and training for technical workers. The center also serves to connect joint research and development, technology exchanges and direct investment projects between companies in the two countries. The aim is to transfer the production technology and operational experience accumulated by Korea's shipbuilding industry and to firm up cooperative projects between companies, thereby strengthening the competitiveness of U.S. shipyards.
Alongside securing skilled workers, funding is also being directed at raising productivity through automation. The 155.7 billion won joint Korea-U.S. shipbuilding R&D program consists of eight projects, with 33.7 billion won reflected in next year's government budget proposal.
A leading example is the development of an AI-based pipe manufacturing system, pursued jointly by Samsung Heavy Industries and Miller of the United States. With a total of 27 billion won, including 20 billion won in government funds and 7 billion won from the private sector, the project will automate everything from pipe cutting to processing, welding and inspection and build a manufacturing process capable of running unmanned around the clock. Automation of painting for large vessel blocks, linked to Hanwha's Philly Shipyard, will receive 25.9 billion won, with 20 billion won in government funds and 5.9 billion won in private capital, while the development of autonomous transport technology for ultra-large blocks will receive 23.6 billion won, with 20 billion won in government funds and 3.6 billion won in private capital. These projects apply automation to processes where quality and work speed can vary with a worker's level of skill. Development of an AI-based unmanned surface vessel, pursued by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and U.S. defense firm Anduril, has been allocated 27.1 billion won, including 20 billion won in government funds and 7.1 billion won in private capital.