The First Demonstration Project of Eco-Friendly LPG Ships Begins... Busan City Starts Demonstration in 'Marine Mobility Special Zone'

Leading Environment and Economy Simultaneously with Eco-Friendly Ships

Nation's First Commercialization Demonstration of Small and Medium-Sized LPG Ships

Demonstration project details for applying LPG fuel to medium and small-sized vessels.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Busan City is embarking on a demonstration project in the ‘Busan Marine Mobility Regulatory Free Zone’ to secure technological leadership in the global LPG engine ship market.

Busan City announced on the 12th that it will promote a demonstration project to lead the eco-friendly ship industry starting from September 8.

This demonstration project applies LPG fuel, proven to be eco-friendly and economical, to medium and small-sized ships.

It will be conducted at the special zone, Korea Maritime and Ocean University, to secure a track record through land and sea demonstrations and to reflect the results in laws, standards, and regulations.

The project includes ▲construction and operation demonstration of hybrid electric propulsion ships with LPG engine generators for medium-sized ships ▲conversion and operation demonstration of LPG outboard motors for small ships ▲and demonstration of LPG supply from land to ships.

Until now, there were no construction inspection standards or fuel supply standards for ships using LPG fuel, making shipbuilding and operation impossible.

With the designation of the Regulatory Free Zone, regulations have been relaxed, allowing the first domestic performance evaluation and safety verification demonstration of components at the land testbed within the Shipbuilding and Marine Application Demonstration Technology Center at Korea Maritime and Ocean University.

Busan City plans to proceed with sea demonstrations starting from April 2022, after the completion of land demonstrations. It is expected that once related laws and standards are established, the commercialization of LPG ships will become fully feasible.

Park Hyung-joon, Mayor of Busan, explained, “We plan to proactively respond to the eco-friendly ship market to create new growth engines for Busan, leading to regional economic revitalization through new job creation and attracting companies.”

Mayor Park added, “Furthermore, we will build an R&D platform for hydrogen fuel ships and promote demonstration projects for LNG fuel ships to realize our core pledge of making Busan a low-carbon green city.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.