Hanwha Ocean inks deal on developing liquefied CO2 carrier

Major South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean said Thursday it has signed an agreement with three foreign institutions on the development of a large liquefied carbon dioxide carrier.

The deal calls for Hanwha Ocean and the institutions to share their know-how and experiences to develop a 40,000-cubic-meter liquefied CO2 carrier and study ways of minimizing greenhouse gas emissions from a vessel in operation. Through the collaboration, they are planning to come up with a detailed design of a large liquefied CO2 carrier and its specifications, Hanwha Ocean said.

The three foreign institutions are Greek mid-stream CO2 services provider EcoLog, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), a U.S. maritime classification society, and Scottish liquefied gas solutions provider Babcock LGE.

Hanwha Ocean, which has played a key role in the four-way deal, will conduct a comprehensive review of a plan for the development of a liquefied CO2 carrier and put forward its detailed design, including the hold.

EcoLog will be tasked with providing industry requirements for such a vessel and know-how in ship operation, with ABS taking charge of checking rules on overall design specifications.

Babcock LGE will be in charge of developing a design related to a cargo management system, including a reliquefaction system, Hanwha Ocean, formerly Daewoo Shipbuilding Marine Engineering Co. (DSME), said.

A Hanwha Ocean official said the company will push to gain a competitive edge over rivals by successfully developing a liquefied CO2 carrier with optimal performance through the joint project.