A rendered image of HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering's next-generation high-pressure fuel pump for liquefied natural gas-powered vessels. Courtesy of HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering
HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) said Monday it has successfully developed a domestically produced high-pressure fuel pump for liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered vessels — a component the Korean shipbuilding industry had long relied on foreign suppliers to provide.
The company held a type-approval ceremony in Jinhae, South Gyeongsang Province, where Bureau Veritas, the France-based international classification society, officially certified the pump's performance and safety.
The Liberia Registry, one of the world's largest ship flag states, also participated from the development stage to validate the pump's compatibility with real vessel operating conditions.
HD KSOE developed the high-pressure pump — which supplies LNG fuel from storage tanks to ship engines — independently, with domestic small and medium-sized enterprises Pritech and Seongmun handling manufacturing and packaging. The pump has already secured supply contracts for more than 70 vessels from shipyards in Korea and abroad.
High-pressure LNG fuel pumps had previously been dominated by overseas manufacturers, leaving Korean shipbuilders dependent on imports and exposed to supply chain risks and maintenance constraints.
"This certification confirms the global competitiveness of the high-pressure pump we developed in-house," an HD KSOE official said.
"We will apply it successfully to actual vessels and raise our customers' satisfaction to the next level."
LNG-powered ships use liquefied natural gas as fuel in place of conventional marine diesel, significantly reducing sulfur oxide and carbon dioxide emissions.
This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.
Source: Korea Times News
