Hanwha Ocean (042660.KS) has won approvals from global classification societies for designs including a standardized floating liquefied natural gas production unit (FLNG).
The company said on the 17th that it secured a series of approvals from major classification societies at Gastech 2026, held in Bangkok, Thailand, from the 14th to the 17th local time. For its standardized FLNG design, it received approval in principle (AIP) from ABS of the United States and DNV of Norway. The approvals follow earlier certification of its standardized basic design for a floating production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO), extending the company's efficiency strategy to FLNG. Hanwha Ocean expects the repeatable, platform-based FLNG design to shorten initial engineering periods and improve predictability in project execution.
The company also won approvals related to gas carriers. Britain's Lloyd's Register (LR) granted an AIP for MCTIV, a high-manganese steel cargo containment system for a 100,000-cubic-meter very large ethane carrier (VLEC). Cargo tanks using MCTIV can secure strong structural safety, and the high workability of high-manganese steel also improves fabrication and processing productivity, Hanwha Ocean said.
At the event, Hanwha Ocean also announced the completion of a joint development project (JDP) with DNV on next-generation high-pressure LNG fuel tank technology. The project raised the allowable pressure of fuel tanks on LNG-powered container ships to a maximum of 2.0 barg from 0.7 barg. The higher pressure allows boil-off gas to be stored for longer periods, improving a vessel's operational flexibility and fuel management efficiency.
With LR, the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to begin joint development aimed at extending inspection intervals for the interiors of LNG carrier cargo tanks. The two sides will jointly develop condition-based monitoring technology and a risk-based safety assessment framework, with the goal of extending the current five-year internal inspection cycle to as long as 7.5 years.
Hanwha Ocean also signed an MOU with the Korean Register (KR) to jointly develop an 18,000-cubic-meter LNG bunkering vessel. The two will develop two bunkering vessel concepts, one applying MCTIV and the other a Type C independent tank. The move is aimed at stepping up efforts in the LNG bunkering vessel market as demand for LNG fuel supply infrastructure grows alongside rising orders for LNG-powered ships.
"We are continuously expanding our technology portfolio to respond to diverse market demand," a Hanwha Ocean official said. "Based on differentiated R&D and engineering capabilities, we will provide optimal future offshore solutions."
