Samsung Heavy Industries said Tuesday it obtained a detailed design approval from the US ship classification organization American Bureau of Shipping for its natural gas liquefaction cycle technology, the first in the shipbuilding industry.

The shipbuilder said, upon the approval, it can save costs for the payment of technology fees and the restrictions on selecting equipment by breaking away from the dependence of overseas engineering companies that have original technologies.

Natural gas liquefaction process is a key technology for marine facilities by cooling natural gas in a gas state below minus 160 degrees Celsius using refrigerants at room temperature to enable the gas to be stored and transported.

This technology requires sophisticated design in the liquefaction process, so only a few advanced engineering companies in the US and Australia have related technologies, according to the firm.

Samsung Heavy said it is meaningful that it has become the first in the shipbuilding industry to stand on its own feet with LNG liquefied process technology. 

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)