President Moon: "It Could Be an Opportunity to Export Our Warships to Mozambique"

Park Suhyun, Cheong National Communication Secretary, Shares Behind-the-Scenes of FLNG Departure Ceremony... President Moon Expresses Regret Over Coverage of Departure Ceremony

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Jeong-min] President Moon Jae-in had a private luncheon with Filipe Nyusi, President of Mozambique, immediately after the 'Korea-Mozambique FLNG Ship Departure Naming Ceremony' on the 15th, during which they discussed the export of our naval vessels, according to Park Soo-hyun, Senior Secretary for Public Communication at the Blue House.

On the 18th, Secretary Park posted 'Stories from the President not included in the briefing' on Facebook. It was about President Moon's reflections related to the 'Korea-Mozambique FLNG Ship Departure Naming Ceremony' held on the 15th at Samsung Heavy Industries in Geoje, Gyeongnam.

At the Blue House staff meeting on the 16th, President Moon said, "(At the luncheon with the President of Mozambique) he mentioned the need to deploy three maritime patrol vessels to ensure safety during operations of the recently delivered FLNG ship Coral Sul, and referred to the use of Korean naval vessels. This could be an opportunity for the export of our naval ships, so I hope we pursue it."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Moon conveyed, "(The President of Mozambique) mentioned plans to order an additional FLNG unit of the same scale as this one, praised the excellence of Korean ships, and expressed hope for the expansion of Korean companies' entry."

President Moon did not hide his expectations that this could be an opportunity for our companies. He said, "I also requested interest and support for expanding our companies' entry into the LNG sector and ensuring the safety of our people during the summit luncheon." He emphasized, "Although only one FLNG ship is being delivered to Mozambique, its price is as high as 2.4 billion USD (2.9 trillion KRW)."

President Moon explained, "In 2020, our country conditionally contracted for 17 LNG carriers (estimated at about 4 trillion KRW) to participate in the development of the Mozambique Area 1 offshore gas field, and we are now approaching the main contract. This is the largest scale in the history of domestic shipbuilding in terms of compensated tonnage, and the largest in the past seven years in terms of contract amount."

He added, "With additional LNG production increase through gas field development, further orders for LNG carriers are expected, which will be a great opportunity for our shipbuilders."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, President Moon expressed regret over the media coverage of the 'Korea-Mozambique FLNG Ship Departure Naming Ceremony.' He said, "The coverage of the Mozambique FLNG ship departure naming ceremony is somewhat disappointing. Of course, I saw that it was mainly reported through photo articles, but articles that convey the content and meaning well to the public seem insufficient."

Regarding this, Secretary Park explained, "At the Blue House staff meeting on the morning of the 16th, the President expressed his opinion on the media coverage. It is quite unusual for President Moon Jae-in to comment on specific articles."

President Moon said, "How important must the FLNG ship be to Mozambique for the President to have traveled all the way from Africa to Korea for the departure naming ceremony? I understand the Mozambique President's feelings, and since it is also a very important occasion for our country, although not long after I visited there, I willingly went."

Secretary Park conveyed, "The President smiled and said, 'Do you think I went all the way to Geoje just to have one lunch?' but I felt a lot of regret in the President's smile."

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