President Donald Trump announced last month on social media that the United States will share its nuclear submarine propulsion technology with South Korea, which plans to construct its submarines at the Philadelphia Shipyard, writes Justin Katz for Breaking Defense.
“South Korea will be building its Nuclear Powered Submarine in the Philadelphia Shipyards, right here in the good ol’ U.S.A.,” wrote Trump. “Shipbuilding in our Country will soon be making a BIG COMEBACK.”
Philly Shipyard was acquired by South Korea-based Hanwha last year from a Norwegian investment group in a strategic bid by the Asian country to advance its business with the US Navy.
The nuclear propulsion technology that Trump has agreed to share, already in use by the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, is highly guarded due to its strategic value. South Korea had requested access from the previous administration, but it was denied. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has since suggested that the request may have been misinterpreted at the time, with officials believing South Korea was looking for nuclear weapons rather than just the fuel.
Establishing a shipyard in Philadelphia capable of building nuclear submarines would be a huge undertaking that would take many years, if not decades, to accomplish.
Read more about the deal between the US and South Korea in Breaking Defense.
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Editor’s Note: This post first appeared on DELCO Today in January 2026.
