Major South Korean shipbuilders have reportedly established a joint task force to support the government's shipbuilding cooperation initiative with the United States, known as the "Make American Shipbuilding Great Again" (MASGA) Project.

According to industry sources on Sunday, the nation's top three shipbuilders – HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Hanwha Ocean, and Samsung Heavy Industries – recently formed the task force in collaboration with the Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering Association.

The task force is said to have held its inaugural meeting and plans to begin formal discussions related to the MASGA project once the industry's summer break concludes in early to mid-August.

An industry official noted that various approaches to implementing the shipbuilding cooperation are being considered, and the task force is intended to support these efforts, with the industry working closely with the government to advance the project.

The MASGA initiative, proposed by Seoul, includes a 150-billion-dollar investment by South Korea in the U.S. shipbuilding industry. This forms part of a broader 350-billion-dollar investment package pledged by Seoul in exchange for the United States reducing its reciprocal tariff rate on South Korean goods to 15 percent.