Korean-owned Philly Shipyard lands $269 million U.S. Navy landing ship

Hanwha Defense USA will build a Medium Landing Ship for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps at its Philadelphia shipyard under a $269 million subcontract from TOTE Services, the company announced, giving the South Korean-owned group its first contract to build a ship for the U.S. Navy. The award covers one vessel at Hanwha Philly Shipyard, with options for three more. TOTE Services, which manages construction of the new class on the U.S. Navy's behalf, said it has secured building slots that allow work to begin in the fourth quarter of 2027, and the program's first ship is now expected to be delivered in 2030, later than the fall 2029 target cited when the management contract was awarded in July. The deal follows an unusual buying arrangement. Instead of contracting directly with shipyards, the U.S. Navy hired TOTE Services as a vessel construction manager, a company that holds the prime contract, picks the builders and oversees their cost and schedule. The U.S. Navy awarded TOTE that $2.2 billion contract in July for up to eight ships, directing Bollinger Shipyards to build one and Fincantieri Marinette Marine to build four, while leaving TOTE to decide how to place up to three more. TOTE said Hanwha was the first shipbuilder selected through that process, based on its pricing and its acceptance of TOTE's subcontract terms, and that talks with Bollinger and Fincantieri are continuing. "This award shows the speed at which the VCM model can move from RFP to contract," said Jeff Dixon, President of TOTE Services. "Through a competitive process, we secured strong terms that benefit the government, along with build positions that allow construction to start in the fourth quarter of 2027." The landing ship is based on the LST-100, a design by Dutch shipbuilder Damen that the U.S. Navy selected in December 2025 to speed up a program that had struggled to settle on a design. The ship is about 100 meters (328 feet) long, displaces roughly 4,000 tons and has a range of more than 6,300 km (3,400 nautical miles). It can run onto a beach and unload troops, vehicles and supplies through its bow doors without needing a port, which the U.S. Marine Corps wants for moving small units between islands and coastlines in the Pacific. The U.S. Navy describes the class as filling the gap between small, short-range landing craft and its large amphibious warships, and the services plan a fleet of 35. The same design is already in service with the Nigerian Navy and has been chosen by Australia. "Since acquiring Philly Shipyard in 2024, Hanwha has made significant investments in its workforce and technology to pave the way to build ships for the U.S. Navy and other federal customers," said HDUSA President and CEO Michael Coulter. Hanwha bought the Philadelphia yard in December 2024 for $100 million, with Hanwha Systems taking a 60% stake and Hanwha Ocean the remaining 40%. Earlier this week, Hanwha Defense USA said it is acquiring the controlling stake through an HDUSA-led joint venture, placing the yard under its U.S. defense arm. The company says the shipyard's workforce has more than doubled since the purchase to nearly 2,500, and a Hanwha spokesperson told Janes the group has invested $350 million in the site. Until now, the yard's government work has come largely through TOTE. It has built National Security Multi-Mission Vessels, training ships for state maritime academies, for the U.S. Maritime Administration, with four delivered so far, and in July it was selected to build the Missile Defense Agency's new missile-tracking ship, Golden Defender, which is due in 2030. Its only previous U.S. Navy work was a subcontract, announced in March, to help Vard Marine develop concept designs for a future logistics ship.