Samsung C&T tops construction capability rankings for 13th straight year

Samsung C&T has claimed the top spot in South Korea's 2026 construction capability assessment, with Hyundai Engineering & Construction and GS Engineering & Construction placing second and third, respectively.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said it conducted the assessment — covering registered construction companies nationwide that applied for evaluation under the Framework Act on the Construction Industry — and published the results Thursday. The Korea Construction Association handled the evaluation for general contractors, the Korea Specialty Contractors Association for specialty contractors, and the Korea Mechanical Construction Contractors Association for mechanical and gas contractors.

The construction capability assessment is a system that comprehensively evaluates and publicly discloses each company's construction performance, financial condition, technical capability and reputation, helping project owners select appropriate contractors. A total of 74,332 companies were assessed this year, representing 84.1 percent of the 88,424 registered construction firms nationwide.

Samsung C&T retained the top position it held last year, posting a disclosed figure of 34.88 trillion won ($23.8 billion). The result marks the company's 13th consecutive year atop the rankings since 2014. Hyundai Engineering & Construction followed in second place with 18.27 trillion won, also unchanged from last year, while GS Engineering & Construction rose two spots to third with 11.07 trillion won.

Among the top-ranked companies by construction category, Hyundai Engineering & Construction led civil and architectural works with 10.9 trillion won, Daewoo Engineering & Construction topped civil works with 1.8 trillion won, Hyundai Engineering & Construction led architectural works with 9.3 trillion won, Samsung E&A led industrial and environmental facilities with 7.4 trillion won, and Woomi Construction led landscaping with 91.8 billion won.

The top-ranked companies by detailed construction type were GS Engineering & Construction for roads, Posco E&C for railways, Daewoo Engineering & Construction for dams, Hyundai Engineering & Construction for apartments, Hanwha for accommodation facilities, and Hyundai Engineering for office facilities.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said the 2026 assessment results take effect Saturday and will be used in setting bidding eligibility requirements, selecting contractors, conducting credit evaluations and reviewing guarantees when awarding construction projects.