HD Hyundai Samho’s dolphin berth (Courtesy of HD Hyundai Samho)
South Korea’s shipbuilder HD Hyundai Samho Co. expanded berthing facilities to meet the growing eco-friendly ship orders by accelerating the manufacturing process.
The subsidiary of the country’s No. 1 shipyard HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (HD KSOE) completed the construction of a dolphin berth, a facility that allows ships to berth on both sides with sturdy pillars installed in the sea to a pathway.
“With the completion of the second dolphin berth, HD Hyundai Samho will enhance its responsiveness in the eco-friendly ship market,” HD Hyundai Co. Chairman Kwon Oh-gap said at the completion ceremony on Wednesday.
HD Hyundai, the country’s shipbuilding and machinery conglomerate, is a holding company of HD KSOE. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., another subsidiary of HD KSOE, operates the No. 1 dolphin berth of 317 m.
TO SPEED UP SHIPBUILDING
The new 530-meter dolphin berth equipped with two large cranes is expected to quadruple the speed of the shipbuilding process as it can accommodate up to four ultra-large vessels at once, said HD Hyundai Samho, formerly Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co.
“The facility is predicted to significantly improve the space efficiency as it allows us to dock multiple vessels at a space for only one,” said a company official.
The new dolphin berth extended HD Hyundai Samho’s total quay wall to 3.6 kilometers enough to work on 18 vessels, according to the shipbuilder.
HD Hyundai Samho broke ground on the berth in July 2023 to ease a berth shortage, which delayed shipbuilding despite increasing orders for eco-friendly vessels including liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers. The company had even leased nearby ports to alleviate the shortage.
“The growing orders for high value-added ships required the dolphin berth,” said the official. “Eco-friendly vessels such as LNG carriers need up to double the time for works on a quay, compared to ordinary ships, as they have many structures to be installed on top of vessels.”
By Sang Hoon Sung
uphoon@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.
