SHIPBUILDERS TOP GLOBAL RANK

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Despite the pandemic, Korean shipbuilders have topped the global ranks in terms of orders, beating their Chinese rivals. Their secret is eco-friendly technology. Here's more.

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​Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering recently received an order from a German company for building six container vessels worth 1.8 trillion won. The vessels are the world's largest eco-friendly ships powered by LNG.

[Soundbite] MOON SEUNG-HAN(DAEWOO SHIPBUILDING & MARINE ENGINEERING) : "Ships powered by LNG emit 30 percent less CO2. This type of fuel is ideal for meeting environmental standards."

Korea's large shipbuilders such as DSME and Samsung Heavy Industries received orders worth 14 trillion won in Q4 of 2020, beating their Chinese rivals and topping the global ranking for three straight years. This was possible thanks to their eco-friendly technologies for building LNG carriers which helped them stay afloat during the pandemic. International environmental standards for ships are expected to become stricter in the future. The IMO and the EU announced their plans to introduce strict regulations on sulfur oxides in ship fuel, energy efficiency directives, as well as carbon emissions trading. Aged ships that fail to meet energy efficiency or carbon emissions targets will face output and speed limits. Demand for replacing vessels will only rise.

[Soundbite] YANG JONG-SEO(EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF KOREA) : "Old ships with low fuel efficiency as well as vessels that don't have eco-friendly, high-efficiency technologies are expected to suffer a serious blow."

Stringent environmental maritime regulations have presented Korean shipbuilders with new opportunities.