HD Hyundai has developed a special marine supply vessel for ammonia for the first time in Korea. Ammonia is drawing much attention as an eco-friendly energy source.
HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE) and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, two shipbuilding affiliates of HD Hyundai, jointly developed an floating, storage, re-gasification unit (FSRU) for ammonia with Korea National Oil Corporation and obtained its approval in principle from Lloyd’s Register of the United Kingdom on April 19.
The ammonia-FSRU developed this time is a ship that stores liquefied ammonia transported from a production site and changes it back to gas (re-gasification) when necessary to supply it to customers.
Ammonia is an eco-friendly fuel that does not emit carbon dioxide during combustion. When mixed with coal, it can reduce carbon emissions while maintaining power generation. In Korea, 20 percent ammonia combined fired power generation is being promoted to achieve a national natural gas reduction goal. The nation will build distribution infrastructure for four million tons of ammonia by 2030.
Ammonia is also attracting attention as a carrier for storing and transporting hydrogen. Ammonia is a compound in which hydrogen and nitrogen are combined. Its liquefaction temperature is 33 degrees below zero, higher than that of hydrogen (253 degrees below zero). When ammonia is liquefied, its hydrogen storage density is 1.7 times more than that of liquefied hydrogen, making ammonia suitable for the large-scale long-distance transportation and storage of hydrogen.
HD Hyundai, Korea National Oil Corporation, and Lloyd’s Register signed a joint development agreement for an ammonia-FSRU in December of 2022. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries carried out its basic design and HD KSOE developed key equipment which is a re-gasification system. Korea National Oil Corporation provided technical information on its clean ammonia acquisition/storage infrastructure construction project.