Hanwha Group, one of Korea’s top 10 conglomerates, has officially established a shipping company to support Hanwha Ocean (formerly Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering) in winning more orders for high-tech ships in the global new shipbuilding market.
Hanwha Ocean announced on April 15 that it has formally established Hanwha Shipping LLC. Last year, Hanwha Ocean added shipping and ocean freight forwarding to its scope of operations during an amendment to its articles of incorporation, and shortly thereafter announced its specific goal of entering the shipping industry.
Unlike traditional shipping companies that generate revenue through the operation of ships, Hanwha Shipping LLC will focus on playing the role of a “laboratory” that serves as a validation platform for Hanwha Ocean’s green and digital ship technologies. By operating ships equipped with environmentally friendly and digital technologies being developed by Hanwha Ocean, Hanwha Shipping LLC can directly verify the utility and stability of Hanwha Ocean-built ships.
By establishing Hanwha Shipping LLC, Hanwha Ocean not only plans to build zero-carbon and digitalized ships, but also intends to conduct demonstration projects. The company aims to take a leading position in the global shipping market by actively developing environmentally friendly technologies in line with the decarbonization trend.
Earlier this year, at the Davos Forum in Switzerland, Hanwha Group Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan announced the launch of the “Zero Carbon Propulsion Gas Carrier,” which is considered a “truly” environmentally friendly ship that can surpass the limitations of existing environmentally friendly ships (which require approximately 5-15% fossil fuel) and completely eliminate carbon emissions by using 100% ammonia as marine fuel.
In a separate statement on the establishment of the shipping company, Hanwha Ocean said, “From a shipowner’s point of view, it is difficult to find leaders in applying and operating new technologies in the shipping industry, as the service life of a new ship is usually more than 20 years. Hanwha Ocean will order ships through its own shipping company and conduct demonstration tests in various ways to provide world-class environmentally friendly ships.”
