KRISO acquired AIP for its hybrid-electric car ferry

- A Korea-China battery-electric car ferry received AIP from Italian Register of Shipping -

□ On the 27th, the Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering (KRISO led by President Booki Kim) announced that the hybrid-electric car ferry developed by the Medium-size Ship Design & Engineering Project of the institute had received Approval In Principle (AIP**) from the Italian Register of Shipping (RINA*).

* RINA (Registro Italiano Navale): Refers to the Italian Register of Shipping, which serves to set design and safety standards for ships and supervise shipbuilding and operation.

** AIP (Approval In Principle): Refers to the procedure in which the technical conformity of basic ship design is verified. This process officially certifies the corresponding ship and relevant technology.

□ The ferry developed by the Medium-size Ship Design & Engineering Project of KRISO can accommodate about 800 passengers and 300 containers and is equipped with electric batteries that can generate 6,000KW of electrical power. It is designed to operate on batteries in coastal areas and harbors to achieve the Zero-Emission objective* and conforms to the international standards, including the ship stability requirements provided in SOLAS2020**, thereby proving it to be safe.

* Zero-Emission (zero carbon emissions): Refers to the state where no CO2 is emitted because ships operate without using diesel fuel in coastal areas and harbors.

** SOLAS2020: Refers to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, which provides ship stability requirements for ship facilities and communication systems and those in case of rescue, ship damage, and for normal conditions.

□ Also, a Hazard Identification Study (HAZID*) was jointly conducted with RINA, including by identifying potential hazards that might occur in the overall system when the battery propulsion system is equipped, while determining optimal battery capacity and reflecting the result in the development process.

* HAZID (Hazard Identification Study): Refers to the process of identifying potential hazards in advance, in which shipowners, members from the Register of Shipping (or experts from other institutes), and experts from shipbuilding companies gather to identify hazards and find ways to prevent and respond to them.

□ The Medium-size Ship Design & Engineering Project of KRISO has prepared for the replacement of existing aged car ferries with eco-friendly ships and the transition to a market recovery phase in the post-covid-19 era. As part of this effort, the institute attempted to apply eco-friendly fuel propulsion technology to car ferries in operation between Korea and China.

□ Demand for this Korea-China route had been growing since 1990 with the tourism boom in both countries, but since the industry was hard hit by COVID-19 in January 2020, it has been stagnant for some time. However, a recovery phase that will follow the end of COVID-19 is highly likely to significantly increase the demand for passenger and cargo transport via the Korea-China route.

□ In the route between Gunsan and Shidao, the number of ferry services had already increased in 2018, and a new route connecting Daesan to Weihai was made in 2019. It is also known that the infrastructure for the Korea-China route will be further expanded by 2022, for example, by extending the Pyeongtaek-Dangjin Port International Passenger Terminals.

□ With an expected increase in the demand for passenger and cargo transport between Korea and China, combined with the increased regulations on sulfur oxide emissions imposed since 2020, the transition from existing car ferries to eco-friendly ferries is likely to be accelerated.

□ The certification of the hybrid-electric car ferry developed by the Medium-size Ship Design & Engineering Project of KRISO will serve as a driving force to promote the transition from aged car ferries to eco-friendly ships in the Korea-China route, thereby significantly affecting the small- and medium-sized shipbuilding industry going forward.