HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has secured a significant contract to supply power generation systems for U.S. data centres, marking a major step in their expansion into the energy infrastructure market. The contract, valued at US$ 673.8 million, covers a combined capacity of 1,000 MW and is the largest power generation engine supply agreement signed by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. This contract is part of a broader strategy to capitalize on the growing demand for data centre power generation equipment, driven by the expansion of AI services and cloud infrastructure investments. The company plans to maintain a close collaborative relationship with Corban Energy Group and further expand their business cooperation in upcoming projects.
As artificial intelligence (AI) data centres look to ‘on-site’ power generation, receiving power directly within their premises to overcome power grid limitations, marine engines from the shipbuilding industry are emerging as a new power supply source. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, which has continuously secured large-scale contracts, is reviewing the expansion of its production capacity. Hanwha Engine has jumped back into the market by resuming the production of four-stroke medium-speed engines after about 10 years.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is currently reviewing the expansion of its engine production facilities to respond to the increasing demand for power generation engines for data centres.
The scale of power generation engine contracts for U.S. data centres secured by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries by August of this year reaches a total of US$1.14 billion.
In April 2026, the company signed a contract to supply power generation facilities based on the 20 MW class ‘HiMSEN engine’ with US energy developer AEG. The contract scale is a total of 684 MW. On Aug. 10, it signed a contract to supply power generation facilities based on the 9.6 MW class HiMSEN engine with US energy infrastructure development company Coban Energy Group - for a total contract scale of 1000 MW.
Expanding engine production capacity is an inevitable response to demand. An official from HD Hyundai comments:
“We are reviewing measures to increase production capacity with expansion in mind.”
HD Construction Equipment is also scheduled to complete a new plant in Gunsanby, South Korea, by late 2026. This directly reflects increasing demand for emergency power generation engines centred on AI data centres and the company has established a production line for 1-3 MW class power generation engines with an annual capacity of 1250 units. Emergency power generation engines are mounted on emergency generators - core facilities which support the stable operation of major facilities by supplying power in the event of a power outage or power shortage.
Hanwha Engine has also set out to re-enter the four-stroke medium-speed engine market. Hanwha Engine held a completion ceremony for its medium-speed engine plant at its headquarters in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea, on September 19. The plant, built on a scale of about 2800 pyeong (9,240 square metres), is equipped with a production system dedicated to four-stroke medium-speed engines.
Hanwha Engine’s resumption of four-stroke medium-speed engine production comes about 10 years after it halted production in 2016 due to deteriorating profitability amid the shipbuilding industry’s downcycle. Hanwha Engine has mainly produced two-stroke low-speed engines in the meantime, but it has re-entered the four-stroke medium-speed engine market driven by the demand for engines for marine and land power generation.
The medium-speed engines produced by Hanwha Engine are expected to be utilized initially for supplying marine engines to group affiliates, but the possibility of expanding its business scope into the market for data center power generation engines in the future is also being discussed. An industry official concludes:
“Because it is an engine for power generation, if the owner applies the engine to a ship, it will be used for marine propulsion, and if applied on land, it will be used for data centres.”
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