Rosneft and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. (HSHI) signed an agreement under which the South Korean company will provide technical support in the design and construction of Aframax class vessels at the Zvezda shipyard in Bolshoy Kamen at the XXI Petersburg International Economic Forum.

The agreement is a legally binding document. The document was signed as a part of the development of the agreement, under which a joint venture “Zvezda-Hyundai” was established  in May 2017 between Shipbuilding Complex Zvezda and HSHI in the field of engineering and project management. 

Under the agreement, HSHI provides a list of technical support for the joint venture for the design and construction of Aframax type tankers, including those using capable of running on natural gas,. HSHI will make sure that the working design documentation corresponds to the basic design of the vessel, which is transferred to the capital of the joint venture.

The establishment of  JV will enable HSHI, together with the Russian partner, to implement ship construction projects in the new promising segment of the shipbuilding market - the construction of Green Aframax tankers. Cooperation with the South Korean company will allow Rosneft to create an effective project management system in the field of large-capacity shipbuilding. The JV will be surely another impetus for Russia to localize the production of commercial vessels and marine equipment. Since the design documentation provides for the creation of conditions for a gradual localization of a full cycle of designing tankers of the Aframax type.

"Technological partnership with the world's largest shipbuilding company will allow us to acquire the necessary competencies in the area of engineering support and management of ship construction projects. This cooperation will ensure DTSS and Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex access to unique technologies for the production of advanced marine equipment, such as modern environmentally friendly Aframax type tankers that run on NGV fuel, and will open prospects for the localization of production and development of the shipbuilding cluster in the Far East of Russia "- said , Rosneft Chief Executive Officer Igor Sechin.

Source: Rosneft