Hanwha Ocean and Bureau Veritas partnership advances safety and performance in new standard 270K LNG Carrier design development

Seoul, South Korea, March 15, 2024 - Bureau Veritas (BV), a world leader in testing, inspection, and certification, has announced the successful conclusion of a Joint Development Project (JDP) with Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. (Hanwha Ocean) for the development of a 270K LNG Carrier.

Hanwha Ocean's proprietary hull design for a 270K LNG carrier was meticulously developed to anticipate and fulfil the future demands of the LNG market. By optimizing the hull’s performance and maximizing cargo capacity, it exceeds the capabilities of the existing 263K LNG and FSRU design. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in the partnership between Hanwha Ocean and Bureau Veritas, showcasing their combined expertise in advancing cutting-edge LNG carrier technology.

Throughout the project, Hanwha Ocean prepared the development of Hull Key Drawings for the 270K LNG Carrier design in compliance with BV’s requirements and relevant regulations. Subsequently, Hanwha Ocean and BV agreed to jointly develop this new size vessel to secure structural reliability and obtain an Approval in Principle. 

To verify the Hull Key Drawings provided by Hanwha Ocean, BV performed 2D local scantling and 3D Cargo Hold Finite Element Analysis, assessing the longitudinal strength of the hull, as well as the yielding and buckling of longitudinal and transverse members. Fatigue analysis was also conducted using a local fine mesh to evaluate the details of hull structures sensitive to fatigue.

Upon the completion of the comprehensive verification on the hull design, the certification was delivered to Hanwha Ocean on February 28, 2024.

Sang-Don Kang, Vice President of Basic Design Department of Hanwha Ocean, said: “The newly developed 270K LNGC is dedicated to minimizing unit freight costs, and ensuring structural robustness for the vessel’s safety performance. I am pleased that the structural reliability of this new vessel will be verified once again through this JDP with BV.”

Picture caption: The agreement for the Joint Development Project was signed by Sang-Don Kang, Vice President of Basic Design Department of Hanwha Ocean, and Drago Pinteric, Country Chief Executive of BV Korea, in December 2023.