Tongyeong Eco Power, First LNG Carrier Arrives for Natural Gas Supply

HDC Group announced on the 20th that it held an arrival ceremony to commemorate the first docking of the ‘AMADI’ vessel transporting LNG to be used at the Tongyeong Eco Power Plant on the 17th.

Jung Mong-gyu, Chairman of HDC Group, along with HDC Group executives and representatives from Hanwha Energy and Hanwha Construction Division, attended the inaugural docking ceremony of the vessel "AMADI," which will transport LNG to be used at Tongyeong Eco Power, located in the Anjeong National Industrial Complex in Tongyeong City, Gyeongnam, on the 17th.

The AMADI vessel loaded approximately 69,000 tons of LNG in Lumut, Brunei on the 7th and departed, arriving at its destination, the Korea Gas Corporation Tongyeong LNG Receiving Terminal, 10 days later on the 17th. The LNG unloaded this time is planned to be used as fuel for the power generation facility test operation scheduled until the first half of next year, starting with the gas supply facility test operation planned for the end of November.

The arrival ceremony was held with about 30 related personnel, including Chung Mong-gyu, Chairman of HDC Group, key executives of HDC Group, Kim Young-wook, Vice President of Hanwha Energy who participated as a strategic investor (SI) in the Tongyeong natural gas power project, Lee Heung-bok, CEO of Tongyeong Eco Power, and Kim Jong-sung, Head of the Korea Gas Corporation Tongyeong Terminal Headquarters.

Chung Mong-gyu, Chairman of HDC Group, said, “The Tongyeong natural gas power project is HDC Group’s first project entering the energy development sector. It was made possible today through cooperation between the private and public sectors, including our strategic partner Hanwha Energy, Hanwha Construction Division, Korea Gas Corporation, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Gyeongsangnam-do Province, and Tongyeong City.” He added, “Let us not lose our focus until the end and complete a perfect test operation to become the best LNG combined cycle power plant that supplies energy stably to the people.”

Tongyeong Eco Power is a private investment project by HDC Group to stabilize Korea’s power supply and demand and revitalize the local economy through the Tongyeong natural gas power project. HDC, Hanwha Energy, and Hanwha are shareholders. It was included in the government’s 6th Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand in 2013 and was confirmed in the 9th Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand in December 2020. The LNG power plant construction, which will be equipped with one 1,012 MW LNG power plant and one 200,000 kL LNG tank by investing about 1.3 trillion KRW in the Anjeong National Industrial Complex in Tongyeong, Gyeongnam, has progressed about 90% as of November this year and is scheduled to start commercial operation in July 2024.

HDC Group has joined forces to create a business structure that can enhance national competitiveness by entering Korea’s energy sector, which has a high energy dependency. It is the first domestic combined cycle power plant to have LNG storage facilities, and by connecting the Korea Gas Corporation Tongyeong Terminal manufacturing facilities and private manufacturing facilities near the project site, Tongyeong Eco Power and the Gas Corporation can jointly use LNG storage tanks.

A Tongyeong Eco Power official said, “Through cooperation between HDC and Hanwha Group, we have developed the first combined cycle power plant in Korea with its own LNG facilities, reducing power generation costs and contributing to national energy efficiency.” They added, “It is expected to contribute to reducing national energy costs by increasing the utilization rate of the existing Korea Gas Corporation infrastructure.”