South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries has expanded its shipbuilding capacity further by enlisting China’s Hengli Heavy Industries — formerly STX Dalian Shipbuilding — to build large hull blocks and help to resolve a looming labour shortage.

Shipbuilding sources said Hengli will be constructing hull blocks for Evergreen Marine’s 20 container ship newbuildings of 15,000 teu, which the liner company commissioned SHI to build in 2021.