# Hanwha Ocean Procures 1,800-Ton Goliath Crane as RIEC Starts Build
*The Chinese equipment builder broke ground on the 205-meter-span gantry crane to double mega-block lifting capacity at the Okpo yard for high-value gas and naval hulls.*
**Published:** October 4, 2026
**By:** Hyun-jung Lee
**Section:** Shipbuilding & Defense — South Korea
**Format:** Breaking
**Confidence:** medium
**Source:** https://eastasiabrief.com/shipbuilding/hanwha-ocean-procures-1-800-ton-goliath-crane-riec-524
**Publisher:** East Asia Brief (https://eastasiabrief.com/)
---
## What to know
- RIEC began fabrication Oct. 4 on an 1,800-ton Goliath crane for Hanwha Ocean
- The 205-meter span crane doubles hook capacity over existing 900-ton units at Okpo
- Structural fabrication will run nine to 12 months before delivery to South Korea
*A worker cuts a heavy steel structure inside a fabrication facility as work begins on a massive gantry crane for a South Korean shipbuilder. (AI-generated image)*
Nantong Rainbow Intelligent Equipment began fabrication Oct. 4 of an 1,800-metric-ton gantry crane bound for South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean to expand mega-block assembly capacity at its Okpo yard.
The Chinese equipment builder cut steel for the export project at its Nantong manufacturing base. Global maritime reporting confirmed on Sunday that the crane will go to Hanwha Ocean's primary facility in Geoje.
The gantry crane features an 1,800-metric-ton lifting capacity and a span of 205 meters. The specification doubles the lifting threshold of the 900-metric-ton Goliath cranes currently operating at Okpo's drydocks.
The unit ranks among the largest gantry cranes deployed at an active South Korean commercial shipyard. Jiangsu Rainbow Heavy Industries secured the initial manufacturing award under its GENMA brand in January.
Hanwha Ocean runs its primary shipbuilding activities across roughly 4.9 million square meters at Okpo. The facility houses the No. 1 dock, which measures 530 meters in length and 131 meters in width.
That drydock currently relies on a single 900-metric-ton Goliath crane alongside smaller jib cranes. The limited hook capacity has forced engineers to restrict the size of individual hull blocks lowered into the dock.
Modern commercial shipbuilding relies heavily on mega-blocks that weigh between 800 and 1,500 metric tons. When cranes lack sufficient lifting margins, shipbuilders must join smaller components directly inside the drydock.
Assembling modules inside the basin consumes critical dock occupancy days. By doubling hook capacity to 1,800 tons, Hanwha Ocean can lift fully consolidated hull structures and heavy offshore modules in single crane maneuvers.
The new crane design includes multiple independent hoisting trolleys capable of mid-air hull turnover. That functionality allows riggers to rotate inverted curved blocks weighing up to 1,000 tons before positioning them on keel blocks.
Faster block erection accelerates drydock rotation for high-value commercial tonnage. South Korean shipbuilders hold forward orderbooks extending past three years, with delivery slots committed through 2028 for liquefied natural gas carriers.
Commercial slots for liquefied gas carriers carry tight penalty clauses for schedule slippage. Increasing out-of-dock pre-assembly buffers construction schedules against weather delays and labor bottlenecks, naval architects said.
Hanwha Ocean is also reconfiguring its dock allocations to support specialized naval vessels. The shipbuilder builds attack submarines and surface combatants, and it serves as preferred bidder for South Korea's KDDX destroyer program.
Naval combatants require dense internal outfitting before hull closing. Hoisting fully outfitted three-deck blocks with pre-installed piping, cabling and propulsion components requires higher hook tonnage than unequipped commercial hull rings.
The crane upgrade also supports floating offshore plant construction. Hanwha Ocean fabricates floating liquefied natural gas hulls and production units that incorporate topside process modules weighing well over 1,000 metric tons each.
Domestic competitors have previously invested in four-figure lifting infrastructure. Samsung Heavy Industries operates two 1,200-metric-ton Goliath cranes at its nearby Geoje shipyard, allowing simultaneous tandem lifts for super-mega blocks.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries operates similar heavy gantry equipment at its Ulsan complex. The new 1,800-ton crane gives Hanwha Ocean single-hook lifting capacity exceeding the primary cranes at competing domestic yards.
Parent company Jiangsu Rainbow Heavy Industries builds port and marine handling equipment under the GENMA and KOCH brands. The Shenzhen-listed machinery specialist has steadily expanded its share of Asian yard crane contracts.
Subsidiary Rainbow Heavy Machineries delivered an 1,800-ton crane and a 1,200-ton crane to China's Yangzi Hongyuan Shipbuilding in August. Those deliveries provided the engineering baseline for the unit now under construction for Okpo.
South Korean shipyards regularly procure large gantry cranes from Chinese equipment fabricators. Heavy steel structural fabrication offers cost advantages in China, while control systems and specialized drive components use international specifications.
The GENMA gantry crane integrates variable-frequency drive motors, programmable logic controllers and energy feedback units. The system recovers electrical power during heavy load lowering to cut yard electricity consumption, engineers said.
Wind tunnel simulation models guided the structural box-girder design. Coastal shipyards in South Gyeongsang face seasonal typhoon conditions, requiring high stability against lateral wind loading along exposed sea-facing quaysides.
Hanwha Ocean has not published a regulatory filing disclosing the procurement expenditure on the Korea Exchange. The company has funded continuous yard automation and safety improvements through its post-acquisition capital expenditure program.
Contract prices for 1,800-ton gantry cranes typically range between $40 million and $60 million depending on track rails and electrical substations, shipyard procurement executives said.
The notice issued by the equipment builder did not state the formal delivery date or the target commissioning schedule at Okpo. Structural fabrication of the legs and main girder typically spans nine to 12 months.
The crane components will move to South Korea aboard heavy-deck transport vessels once Chinese fabrication concludes. Hanwha Ocean will conduct ground rail reinforcement and final load-testing before placing the unit into commercial operation.
## Impact map
| Event | Korea | China | Japan | Global impact |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1,800t Goliath crane build | Hanwha Ocean doubles single-lift capacity to 1,800t to clear gas and naval backlogs | Jiangsu Rainbow books high-margin export crane fabrication through subsidiary RIEC | no direct exposure, domestic builders use Mitsui E&S lifting systems | LNG carrier building intervals compress as mega-block assembly shifts out of drydocks |
## In this story
- **Companies:** Hanwha Ocean, Jiangsu Rainbow Heavy Industries
- **Tickers:** 042660.KS, 002483.SZ
- **Exposed:** Samsung Heavy Industries, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries
- **Policy:** Economic Security
- **Impact:** Capex, Supply Chain, Order Book
## Primary sources
1. rainbowcoglobal.com
2. imarinenews.com
3. imarine.cn
4. hanwha.com
5. hanwhaocean.com
---
Cite as: East Asia Brief, "Hanwha Ocean Procures 1,800-Ton Goliath Crane as RIEC Starts Build," October 4, 2026. https://eastasiabrief.com/shipbuilding/hanwha-ocean-procures-1-800-ton-goliath-crane-riec-524