Posted on August 13, 2025
Hanwha Ocean aims to strengthen its foothold in Brazil’s shipbuilding sector by establishing a new manufacturing facility.
Hanwha Ocean is establishing a manufacturing base for marine plants in Brazil. This is interpreted as a move to enhance market dominance in line with Brazil’s shipbuilding industry support policies and to meet local component usage requirements after securing marine plant projects.
Brazil is the first place where Samsung Heavy Industries entered among domestic shipbuilding industries. Samsung Heavy Industries entered in 2006 by transferring shipyard construction and operation and shipbuilding technology to local companies but withdrew in 2012 due to operational issues.
According to foreign media on the 13th, Hanwha Ocean’s marine business division announced plans to establish a manufacturing base using land in the Niterói area south of Rio de Janeiro, at an event in the oil, gas, energy, and marine sectors hosted by the industrial federation of Rio de Janeiro state.
Hanwha Ocean plans to participate in various marine development project bids using its local manufacturing base. The company is particularly interested in securing Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) facilities and Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) systems.
Brazil is promoting a shipbuilding industry reconstruction plan. The Brazilian Ministry of Ports and Airports decided to support approximately 5.5 trillion won for shipyard expansion and port infrastructure construction in May, and the Brazilian state oil company Petrobras plans to build 25 ships by 2035.
Hanwha Ocean is participating in the Petrobras P-86 FPSO bid, and it appears that establishing production facilities in Brazil also serves to meet local component usage obligations once the contract for the project is secured.
The Petrobras P-86 FPSO project requires at least 20% local production, integration, and commissioning in Brazil. It is reported that, besides Hanwha Ocean, China’s COOEC and CIMC Raffles, as well as Singapore’s Sitrion, have also submitted bids for the project.
Although Hanwha Ocean is working to secure a base in Brazil, the shipbuilding industry believes it is crucial to resolve operational issues since there are precedents, such as the previous withdrawal of Samsung Heavy Industries. Samsung Heavy Industries entered Brazil by signing a comprehensive cooperation agreement with the ATLANTICO consortium, which was pursuing shipyard construction in Suape, Brazil, in 2006. At that time, the company exported technology ranging from shipyard construction to shipbuilding while receiving $14 million in royalties and acquired a 10% equity stake for $22 million.
Samsung Heavy Industries participated in shipyard construction and secured orders worth $5.5 billion for eight drill ships, which perform oil and gas drilling in deep sea, within two years in Brazil. The shipyard was completed and began operations in 2009.
However, in 2012, the ATLANTICO shipyard fell into a management crisis, and Samsung Heavy Industries withdrew from the market after refusing the request for entrusted management of the shipyard. ATLANTICO had received years of technical support from Samsung Heavy Industries, but it was reported that worker skill levels did not improve and there were difficulties in transmitting production-related know-how, leading to continuous delays and defects in delivery.
A source in the shipbuilding industry said, “Shipbuilding is a labor-intensive industry, so future operations will be an issue rather than investment and construction,” adding, “overseas business sites can differ significantly from domestic conditions, which could lead to difficulties, and solving this will be key.”
