KRISO, holding ceremony for naming of country's first LNG bunkering vessel

                                                           ▶Developed 500-㎥ LNG bunkering vessel for coastal ships

                                                           ▶ Expected to lay groundwork for promotion of LNG-propulsion vessels

□ The Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering (KRISO led by President Booki Kim) announced that the ceremony for the naming of the 500-㎥ LNG bunkering vessel as “K LNG Dream,”a type of vessel developed for the first time in Korea, had been held at EK Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. in Goseong, Gyeongsangnam-do on October 27.

□ This ceremony was attended by interested individuals from agencies and institutions, including the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, KRISO, the Korea Institute of Marine Science & Technology Promotion, the Korean Register of Shipping, and EK Heavy Industries. A ribbon was cut by Jae-ok Noh, Head of the Ocean Development Department of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, to name the vessel “K LNG Dream.” 

□ The “K LNG Dream” is a bunkering vessel capable of directly supplying LNG fuel to ships floating on the ocean. This technology has recently attracted significant attention as a core infrastructure asset to promote the use of LNG-propulsion vessels, increasingly necessary to respond to the IMO's regulation on emissions from ships.

□ According to Research and Markets, a global market research company, globally, a total of 20-plus LNG-propulsion vessels are in operation, and orders for another 400 have been made, indicating the LNG-propulsion vessel industry is rapidly growing. On the overseas front, a total of 32 LNG bunkering vessels are currently in operation. The market size is expected to increase to approximately 9 trillion won (7.5 billion dollars) by 2027.

□ Looking ahead, KRISO, with the help of support from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Korea Institute of Marine Science & Technology Promotion, has for the past five years been executing a project for the development of LNG bunkering systems designed for coaster ships. This endeavor is of even greater significance in that the entire development process, from design to shipbuilding, equipment and materials provision, commissioning, and inspection, has been implemented exclusively based on Made-in-Korea technologies in cooperation with six domestic research institutes*. 

 * Trans Gas Solution, POSCO, Valmax, EK Heavy industries, Seoul Line, and Mytec

□ Once registered to the Korean Register of Shipping, the “K LNG Dream” vessel will be widely used as a core infrastructure asset for the bunkering of many domestic LNG-propulsion vessels to be operated in coastal waters going forward.

□ In her congratulatory address, Jae-ok Noh, Head of the Ocean Development Department, said, “We are dedicated to establishing the institutional foundation on which the country's LNG bunkering industry can be solidified.”

□ Booki Kim, the President of KRISO, said, “The ‘K LNG Dream' vessel is of great significance in that it has been developed exclusively based on Made-in-Korea technologies. We will continue to contribute to promoting the domestication of the relevant technologies and the use of domestic LNG-propulsion vessels going forward.”