HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering and Malcon to Jointly Develop Offshore Wind Support Vessels...Pushing for Localization

Joint Development Agreement for Korea-Type SOVs with Malcon
Growing Demand Highlights Need for Localized Models
Collaboration with Small Shipyards and Localization of Equipment Pursued

HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering is embarking on the localization of Service Operation Vessels (SOVs) used for the maintenance and repair of offshore wind turbines.

HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, the intermediate holding company for shipbuilding under HD Hyundai, announced on the 14th that it recently signed a mutual cooperation agreement with Malcon, a company specializing in marine engineering and offshore consulting, for the joint development of Korea-type offshore wind support vessels.

HD Hyundai Heavy Industries held a signing ceremony on the 10th at the Pangyo Global R&D Center to sign a mutual cooperation agreement with Malcon for the joint development of Korea-type offshore wind support vessels. From left in the photo are Minkook Kim, Managing Director of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, and Joonseok Lee, CEO of Malcon. HD Hyundai

An SOV is a vessel that supports maintenance and repair work for offshore wind turbines. It provides accommodation and workspaces for workers to stay at sea for extended periods and serves as a maintenance hub within offshore wind farms.

Recently, as offshore wind farms are expanding into waters farther from land, the importance of SOVs is increasing even further.

Under this agreement, the two companies plan to jointly develop an eco-friendly Korea-type SOV optimized for the operational environment of domestic offshore wind farms, and also pursue obtaining Approval in Principle (AiP) from the Korean Register (KR).

HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering will be responsible for developing core technologies, including eco-friendly propulsion systems, shipboard energy storage systems (ESS), and electrification and hybrid propulsion technologies. In addition, the company will sequentially expand the application of eco-friendly propulsion solutions to more vessels, establish a cooperative system with domestic small and medium-sized shipyards, and promote the localization of offshore wind support vessels and equipment.

Malcon, leveraging its expertise in the construction of marine support vessels and in the operation, maintenance, and repair of offshore wind farms, will play a key role in ship design, construction, and commercialization processes.

According to the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), the cumulative global offshore wind installation capacity is expected to expand from 83.2 GW at the end of 2024 to 441 GW by 2034.

Although demand for SOVs is expected to increase in Korea as the offshore wind market grows, there is currently a lack of dedicated standard models suitable for domestic offshore environments.

A representative from HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering stated, "Eco-friendly SOVs are a core infrastructure for the stable operation of the offshore wind market," and added, "We will strengthen our presence in the global market by developing Korea-type SOVs based on advanced eco-friendly propulsion technologies, such as electrification."

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