South Korea drives commercialisation of first liquefied hydrogen carrier
In light of the soaring demand for hydrogen, South Korea has set its sights on becoming the world leader in the construction of large liquefied hydrogen carriers by 2040
With participants from HD Hyundai, Hanwha Ocean, Samsung Heavy and national organisations developing technologies, the following goalposts have been scheduled: a 2,000 cu m demonstration vessel by 2027, a 40,000 cu m vessel by 2032 and a 160,000 cu m commercial vessel by 2040
THE South Korean government has selected liquefied hydrogen carriers as the next generation of vessels to succeed LNG carriers and has allocated Won55.5bn ($39.2m) with the aim of developing the world’s largest demonstration ship by 2027.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said: “Liquefied hydrogen carriers are the ships of the future, offering significant added value, and enabling us to achieve super-gap competitiveness and secure a new market in the shipbuilding industry.”
The move comes as demand for the large-scale transport of hydrogen is expected to increase, driven by rising appetite for hydrogen.
Global demand for hydrogen is expected to reach 660m tonnes by 2050, accounting for around 22% of final energy demand.
South Korean demand is projected to soar from around 4m tonnes in 2030 to 28m tonnes in 2050.
In light of this, the ministry recently hosted the inauguration ceremony for a joint public-private promotional group, consisting of technical experts from HD Hyundai, Hanwha Ocean and Samsung Heavy Industries, as well as from universities and research institutes.
In November 2024, the ministry announced a strategy for developing liquefied hydrogen carriers, presenting three initiatives to achieve its vision of becoming the world leader in the large liquefied hydrogen carriers market by 2040.
The first initiative is to secure the technologies required to source core materials, components and equipment, with the aim of completing the supply chain for equipment by 2030.
The second objective is to demonstrate and scale up liquefied hydrogen carriers. According to the ministry, a 2,000 cu m demonstration vessel with a capacity of 140 tonnes is to be developed by 2027. The next stage is the development of a 40,000 cu m vessel by 2032, followed by a 160,000 cu m commercial vessel by 2040.
The third objective is to develop supporting systems for public-private collaboration with the aim of revitalising hydrogen shipping.
The ministry said: “Liquefied hydrogen carriers can increase transport efficiency by more than tenfold, as liquefied hydrogen shrinks to 1/800 of its original volume at -253°C. However, developing the relevant technologies is difficult, so there are no large ships that have actually been commercialised yet.”
Some 43 research and development tasks are underway in the country involving 101 organisations. The newly formed public-private partnership group will focus on developing a technology ecosystem through collaboration on research and development projects, the construction of a demonstration ship and the establishment of a liquefied hydrogen equipment supply chain. The group will also lead the commercialisation of the vessel.
‘We will overhaul relevant laws and systems to establish our technologies as a global standard and provide comprehensive support for securing the core technologies of large LH2 carriers in the early stages,” the ministry added.
