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- New 3 GW power generation engine production facility to be built in Ulsan, targeting full-scale operations in 2028
- Dedicated manufacturing facility for key SMR equipment to be established; global SMR market projected to grow to 150 GW by 2050
- “We will secure core competitiveness in power generation engines and SMRs to lead the global AI infrastructure market”
SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — HD Hyundai Heavy Industries disclosed on the 10th that it will invest a total of KRW 1.0722 trillion to build a new power generation engine production facility and a dedicated manufacturing facility for small modular reactors (SMRs).
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ H54GV HiMSEN gas engine for land-based power generation
The investment is aimed at strengthening the company’s future competitiveness in land-based power generation engines and SMRs.
First, the company will invest KRW 833.6 billion to build a new 3-gigawatt (GW) production facility for its HiMSEN engines in Onsan-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan.
The new production complex will span approximately 215,000 square meters and include an engine assembly and testing facility, a crankshaft machining facility, and an engine block casting facility. Construction is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of next year, with completion targeted for May 2028 and full-scale operations to commence thereafter.
The investment is designed to accelerate HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ expansion into the land-based power generation market by leveraging decades of expertise accumulated in marine engines and proactively responding to surging power demand from AI data centers.
Through the expansion, HD Hyundai expects to secure annual production capacity of 4 GW for land-based power generation engines. The company will also improve production efficiency by operating separate production bases for HiMSEN engines.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ main Ulsan facility will focus on HiMSEN engines for marine applications, while the new facility and HD Hyundai Engine in Yeongam, South Jeolla Province, will specialize in HiMSEN engines for land-based power generation.
HD Hyundai expects the increased production efficiency from this dual-base production structure to expand its total HiMSEN engine production capacity for both marine and land-based power generation applications from the current 3 GW to 7.2 GW by 2030.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries will also invest KRW 238.6 billion to establish a dedicated manufacturing facility for key SMR equipment, with SMRs increasingly recognized as a next-generation energy source. The facility will be built on the premises of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ Ulsan shipyard, with completion targeted for the first half of 2029.
SMRs are next-generation nuclear reactors that generate less power than conventional large-scale nuclear plants and use modularized key components. They offer the advantage of providing a stable supply of electricity while helping reduce carbon emissions. Interest in SMRs has been growing rapidly amid the increase in AI data centers, which require large amounts of power around the clock.
According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the global SMR market is projected to grow rapidly to 150 GW by 2050. Meanwhile, only a limited volume of key SMR equipment has so far been secured for manufacturing and supply, indicating significant potential for future growth.
“This investment is aimed at securing core competitiveness in power generation engines and SMRs, which are emerging as new sources of electricity in the AI era,” an HD Hyundai Heavy Industries official said. “We will proactively respond to rapidly growing power demand and take the lead in the global AI infrastructure market.”
Earlier this year, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries made a full-scale entry into the U.S. data center power infrastructure market by signing power generation equipment supply contracts with Aperion Energy Group and Corban Energy Group in April and August, respectively, valued at KRW 627.1 billion and KRW 956.0 billion.
