South Korea Signs 838-Billion-Won Contract to Build Its First Homegrown Aegis Destroyer
DAPA and Hanwha Ocean signed on 31 July for the detailed design and construction of the KDDX lead ship, unlocking a 7.8-trillion-won programme for six destroyers built around an entirely Korean combat system.
South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration signed a 838 billion won ($581 million) contract with Hanwha Ocean on 31 July 2026 covering the detailed design and construction of the lead ship of the KDDX next-generation destroyer. The contract runs to 30 June 2032 and moves the wider 7.8 trillion won ($5.4 billion) programme from selection into steel.
DAPA named Hanwha Ocean preferred bidder on 1 July after a contest with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries that ended unusually. HD HHI scored 0.6425 points higher on the technical evaluation, but a 1.2-point security deduction linked to a military secrets leak case reversed the ranking: Hanwha Ocean finished on 93.9542 points against 93.3675, a margin of 0.5867. HD HHI had traditionally led South Korean surface combatant programmes, making the outcome a notable shift in the country's naval shipbuilding landscape.
KDDX covers six stealth destroyers in the 6,000-tonne class, replacing the three ageing Gwanggaeto the Great (KDX-I) ships. What sets the programme apart is that both the hull and the combat system are Korean: an integrated dual-band S/X-band phased-array radar housed in an integrated mast, an indigenous combat management system and sonar suite, KVLS-I and KVLS-II vertical launch cells, and integrated electric propulsion intended to cut the acoustic signature. Basic design was completed in December 2023.
The detailed design phase now converts those parameters into production drawings while folding in three additions DAPA has emphasised: digital twin-based modelling of the ship, a multi-layered counter-drone architecture, and an embedded 5G network for network-centric operations. Delivery of the first ship to the Republic of Korea Navy is planned for 2032, with the remaining five to follow.
The Republic of Korea Navy currently fields four Sejong the Great (KDX-III) destroyers, which use the American Aegis combat system and SPY-1D radar, alongside six Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin (KDX-II) ships and three KDX-I. KDDX is therefore not a replacement for the KDX-III Aegis ships but a mid-tier successor built on sovereign technology — the point of the programme as much as the capability itself. South Korea ranks sixth in the global military power ranking.
The signature also matters for Hanwha Ocean's export ambitions. The yard has been pushing Korean surface combatants and submarines into overseas competitions, and a domestically designed radar and combat system removes the third-party release constraints that come with American or European equipment. Construction of the lead ship begins under the contract signed on 31 July; follow-on ships will be contracted separately.
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