Hyundai Glovis and Korea Ocean Business Corporation(KOBC) signed a business agreement for the public ship ownership business. As a result, Hyundai Glovis has secured the world’s largest PCTC, capable of carrying 10,800 small cars, and set an example for the industry by professionally managing the entire process. Let’s look at the heroes who made this agreement a success.
Hyundai Glovis has secured a public shipbuilding project for the Korea Ocean Business Corporation (KOBC) to build 18,000 gross tonnage car carriers (PCTCs). The four PCTCs guaranteed by Hyundai Glovis are new buildings ordered under KOBC’s shipbuilding program and are scheduled for delivery in 2027. They are part of the 12 LNG dual-fuel PCTCs announced by Hyundai Glovis in October last year. Each vessel will be the largest in the world, capable of carrying 10,800 small cars.
Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies have agreed to prioritize space on the vessels if the domestic car industry faces export difficulties due to a vessel shortage. However, the agreement is subject to certain conditions, such as reflecting market conditions and ensuring adequate freight rates. Hyundai Glovis, which has secured four PCTC vessels through this agreement, is expected to prevent export difficulties in the domestic automobile industry and strengthen its business influence to help solve the global PCTC supply shortage.
The public shipowning business agreement between Hyundai Glovis and KOBC was signed on 6 February at Hyundai Glovis’ dedicated automobile terminal at Pyeongtaek Port in the presence of Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Kang Do-hyung, Hyundai Glovis CEO Lee Kyoo-bok, and KOBC’s President Kim Yang-soo. The signing ceremony consisted of a welcome speech by Lee Kyoo-bok, CEO of Hyundai Glovis, followed by a commemorative speech by Kim Yang-soo, President of KOBC, and a congratulatory speech by Kang Do-hyung, Minister of Oceans and Fisheries(MOF). It concluded with the signing and exchanging of contracts and agreements and commemorative photos. The ceremony followed a ship tour to inspect the Hyundai Glovis car ship and export.
Manager Yoo Ju-hyun feels rewarded by the successful completion of such a meaningful event. Her Shipping Business Strategy Team was responsible for the overall event planning of the MOU, including coordination with event agencies, participation in due diligence at Pyeongtaek Port, and stage planning. She also skillfully managed communications with the MOF and KOBC.
Shipping Business Strategy Team Manager Yoo Joo-hyun, who oversaw the MOU ceremony and successfully completed it
Why did you decide to hold the signing ceremony at Pyeongtaek International Terminal?
We have recently signed long-term charter contracts with three shipowners for four 10,800 TEU new buildings at Chinese shipyards to expand our fleet. In particular, we signed a BBC contract with KOBC, an organization under MOF, which is one of the ship chartering methods with competitive charter rates compared to other agreements under government credit-based financing conditions. In conjunction with this, we signed a business agreement with MOF to negotiate with the domestic automobile industry, which is facing export difficulties due to a shortage of hulls, to provide as many spare hulls as possible.
We have talked with MOF and KOBC about this project since March last year. At the beginning of last year, the domestic automobile manufacturers actively appealed to the government about the difficulties in exporting cars due to the shortage of hulls. At the same time, the importance of the automobile industry was emphasized, which created a suitable environment for us to involve both organizations in the new building long-term charter project.
We decided to hold the signing ceremony to commemorate the first low-carbon, ultra-large PCTC carrier project with KOBC. Despite the cold weather, our Pyeongtaek International Terminal, a terminal dedicated to automobiles, would be the perfect venue for the public signing ceremony of the shipowning business agreement.
Yoo Ju-hyun was in charge of the entire event, from planning it to coordinating with the organizers, participating in due diligence at Pyeongtaek Port, the venue, and planning the stage.
How did you prepare for the Convention? How long did it take to prepare, and how did you communicate with the departments involved?
We formed the Convention Preparation Committee in Teams and spent about three weeks preparing for the event. The Convention Preparation Committee consisted of about 30 people. Of course, not all were directly involved in the event, but many contributed to it from their respective positions.
The Business Cooperation/CSR Team was in charge of the overall liaison with the MOF and KOBC, coordinating the direction and needs of the event. At the same time, the Terminal Operations Team played a significant role in checking and preparing for the event at Hyundai Globis Pyeongtaek International Terminal (HPIT). The Maritime Safety Management Team helped to arrange the discharge of the ship GLOVIS SYMPHONY, which was the backdrop for the stage and part of the event program, by liaising with the ship’s captain and our subsidiary, GIMARINE SERVICE. The Shipping Business Group Sales and Operations team coordinated the ship’s schedule. Seo Young-ah, head of the PCTC America Operation Team, did a great job as the emcee, which was the heart of the event. The communications Team took vivid photos of the event, published promotional articles, and responded to reporters invited by the MOF.
I met with the event agency to present our requirements and negotiate a quote within our budget. I immediately organized and communicated with the agency about everything that happened during the preparation process, including the preliminary meeting of the convention committee with the agency at the headquarters, the site inspection at the Pyeongtaek port, the coordination and confirmation of the stage and print design, the supervision of the stage installation on site the day before the event (thank you, Hong Cheol-hee and Kim Kyung-tae, who helped supervise the installation on site in bad weather on my behalf!
More than 30 people were involved in the preparations for the signing ceremony.
The Convention Preparation Committee discusses Convention preparation through Teams.
What were some of the special considerations in organizing the convention?
We were most concerned about the weather as the event was held outdoors against the backdrop of a ship. Initially, we planned to build an additional indoor stage in case of rain so that the event could be held reliably in any situation. However, if we had held the event indoors, it would have been difficult to change the ship’s schedule, which would have diminished the significance of holding the event in Pyeongtaek Port. The cost of building an additional stage, which cost millions of won, was not cheap.
Ultimately, we decided to hold the event outdoors with the proud Glovis ship as a backdrop, even in rainy weather. In the end, the weather on the day of the event was freezing, but it didn’t rain, which made my heart swell. Of course, this decision also incurred costs, such as printing waterproof materials for the stage backdrop and hiring additional installation personnel. Still, holding the event outdoors can leave a much stronger meaning for the participants, regardless of the weather.
In conclusion, please tell us how you felt overseeing the signing ceremony.
It was my first time organizing such an event, and I felt a lot of pressure as it was a big event. However, it was also an opportunity to feel rewarded and proud, as I was able to complete the business agreement ceremony, which was the result of the ship introduction project I had been working on.
In addition to this event, about three more new ship introduction events are planned for the Shipping Division this year. As many related departments are involved in ordering and receiving the ships, we will do our best to create opportunities for our colleagues outside the Shipping Division to feel the same rewarding experience as I did in the field, even if they are not directly related to our work. We look forward to your interest!
Yoo Joo-hyun hopes to see more Hyundai Glovis employees involved in future ship launches.
The success of the Public Shipownership MOU and the MOU Ceremony was made possible by the participation and cooperation of many relevant departments. In addition to the ESG team in charge of supporting public ship ownership policy, the Shipping Business Strategy Team in charge of preparing the MOU ceremony, and the Communication Team that created promotional materials with vivid photos of the ceremony site, the Business Cooperation/CSR Team, the Terminal Operations Team, Maritime Safety Management Team, and the Car Sales/Operations Team participated in the MOU Ceremony Preparation Committee.
Kim Hyun-soo, Senior Manager of the ESG Team, provided political support for selecting Hyundai Glovis for the public ship ownership project. The generalship ownership project solved the shortage of car suits that arose after COVID-19.
What was your role in the public ship ownership program, and what did you do?
In Renault’s case, when the shortage of export vessels was highlighted in the mainstream media and the government and Busan City complained about the problem, MOF and Maritime Affairs expected Hyundai Glovis, the flagship of Korea, to play a role in solving the problem and asked for help. However, we also needed more vessels to transport the automotive cargoes of our contract shippers. As an agency representative, I could explain this situation to the government. Also, I proposed that the construction of automobile ships be supported through the public ship ownership project.
Before the project was completed, many challenges existed. For example, Hyundai Glovis is a large conglomerate with deep pockets, and there were many external concerns about ordering a ship from a Chinese shipyard rather than a Korean one. In response, Kim Hyun-soo met with the KOBC, MOF, and the Joint Export Order Support Group.
ESG Team in charge of policy support for the selection of public ownership projects
Kim Hyun-soo Senior Manager(Left)
What were some of the challenges or highlights of the event?
There were many external stakeholders involved in this event, so there were many things to coordinate, such as the number of participants and time. Also, the final decision on the concept was made about two weeks before the event, so the preparation time was very tight. In the meantime, there were many changes due to external requests, so our manager, Yoo Ju-hyun, had many difficulties preparing for the event. However, we managed the event successfully and are proud of her~
Seo Young-ah, the PCTC America Operation Team’s manager, conducted the MOU ceremony professionally.
We all wore overcoats and attended the event at Pyeongtaek Harbour, but one person impressed me: Seo Young-a. She was the emcee and couldn’t wear a coat, so she must have had a hard time, but I admired her because she was as good as a professional announcer.
Please give us your impressions of this event!
While preparing for the MOU ceremony, I communicated the concept of the desired event with KOCB and MOF; Shipping Business Strategy Team was in charge of the actual preparation of the event, and the Communications Team was in charge of the media publicity. After the event, a representative from MOF and Atmospheres told me that the Minister who attended the event was very pleased with the photos in the media. He also told me that since the event’s media coverage, KOBC had received many calls from other shipping companies asking how they could participate in the shipbuilding business in the future. He also expressed his gratitude, saying that it was more effective than the self-promotion the company had done in the past.
Finally, Senior Manager Kim Hyun-soo said the success was due to the ‘fantastic harmony’ of the teams in charge and thanked them for their efforts.
Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Kang Do-Hyung giving a congratulatory speech
Lee Gyu-bok, CEO of Hyundai Glovis, who is signing the contract, and Kim Yang-soo, CEO of the shipowner, KOBC
Lee Kyoo-bok, CEO of Hyundai Glovis, Kang Do-hyung, MOF, and Kim Yang-soo, CEO of KOBC (from left)
The internal and external parties who participated in the business agreement ceremony are pledging to implement the business agreement together.
It is exposed after wearing a safety helmet and vest.
The ship is briefing on the ship at the stern.
We’re taking a commemorative photo at the GLOVIS SYMPHONY.
By Editorial Department
2024.03.08