South Korea retained its status as the world-leading shipbuilding industry last year despite many COVID-19 challenges.
Experts forecast the new year will treat domestic shipbuilders better as they will benefit from the introduction of eco-friendly policies.
South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering has developed a technology that helps determine the safety of liquefied natural gas carriers in its shipyards.
This saves time and helps cut operating costs as the shipbuilder previously had to take new LNG vessels to one of two specific shipyards to carry out special tests.
Thanks to technological developments, South Korea took more than 40% of the global orders and maintained its position as the world’s top shipbuilder last year.
Industry experts say the domestic shipyards’ performance is likely to catch a massive tail wind in 2021, with the anticipated introduction of new environmental regulations as well as rising global demand for eco-friendly vessels.
The European Union hinted at new measures for carbon emissions targeting ships entering its ports.
To accommodate these changes and bolster its shipbuilding capabilities, South Korea has vowed to support the development of new technologies.
“The oceans and trade ministries will invest over 870 million dollars from 2022 to 2031 in innovative eco-friendly shipbuilding technologies projects. We also plan to give national certificates to eco-friendly vessels and materials to help commercialize new technologies and turn them into global standards.”
Building LNG carriers requires technical precision and the ability to meet high production standards.
The right technology is also needed so that the gas can be kept at 163 degrees Celsius while being stored. With this technology in place, Korean companies are able to stay ahead of their rivals.
“Without the right technology, it’s hard to adapt to the market. We can say there’s a lot for the domestic shipyard to benefit from the changing trend.”
Experts believe the number of global ship orders will jump 24% from last year and many indicators predict a rosy outlook for South Korean shipbuilders.
Source: http://www.arirang.com/News/News_View.asp?nSeq=271706