Korean shipbuilders' new orders hit 8-year high in 2021

South Korean shipbuilders received the largest orders in eight years in 2021, and the country ranked the world's No. 1 in terms of the construction of high value-added vessels, the industry ministry said Thursday.

Local shipbuilders won new orders totaling 17.44 million compensated gross tons (CGTs) last year, more than doubling from the previous year's 8.23 million CGTs, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

It is the largest since 2013 when the figure stood at 18.45 million CGTs, and signaled that the local shipyard industry has been on track to recover from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The South Korean shipbuilders, including Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, accounted for 37.1 percent of the total global orders of 46.96 million CGTs last year, compared with the 31.2 percent share in 2019 and 34.1 percent in 2020.

China took the No. 1 spot by taking up 48.8 percent of the total shipbuilding volume around the globe last year.

But South Korea retained the world's No. 1 spot in terms of orders for high value-added ships, such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, last year by accounting for 65 percent of the total orders for such ships.

It also secured the largest volume of contracts for eco-friendly vessels in the world by taking up 64 percent of the total global orders, the data showed.

"South Korea has been focusing on building high value-added and eco-friendly ships in line with the global trend," a ministry official said.

Of the total fresh orders received by South Korea in 2021, high value-added ships and eco-friendly vessels accounted for 72 percent and 62 percent, respectively, he added. (Yonhap)