‘Factory on the Sea’ Targets Global Market… Hanwha Ocean Obtains Concept Approval for ‘Standard FPSO’

Simultaneous Acquisition of American and French Classification Societies, Enhanced Offshore Plant Capabilities

Standard Design Development Achieves Both Schedule Reduction and Cost Savings

Hanwha Ocean is targeting the global offshore market by showcasing its self-developed standard offshore plant.

Previously, Hanwha Ocean simultaneously obtained Approval In Principle (AIP) for the 'Standard FPSO Pre-FEED Design' from the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the French classification society Bureau Veritas (BV).

The Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) facility acts as an "offshore factory" that extracts crude oil or gas from subsea wells, refines and stores it, and handles offloading to transport vessels.

A standard FPSO rendering developed by Hanwha Ocean.

The standard FPSO design developed by Hanwha Ocean measures 340 meters in length and 62 meters in width. Its daily crude oil production capacity is 190,000 barrels, and it can store approximately 2.38 million barrels of crude oil.

It is also developed to accommodate topside structures for oil and gas production facilities weighing up to 55,000 tons and covering an area of 17,600 square meters. The hull design enables operation for up to 20 years without requiring re-docking, maximizing operational efficiency.

Re-docking refers to the process of bringing a vessel floating at sea back into a shipyard dock for maintenance.

Hanwha Ocean began the basic design plan in February with the goal of developing a standard FPSO that can be deployed throughout the deepwater areas of West Africa, completing it in August. Through this, the company has strengthened its design capabilities for topside structures that integrate oil production and processing facilities, while further enhancing the competitiveness of its hull design, which had previously held an advantage.

With this concept approval, Hanwha Ocean is expected to strengthen its order competitiveness by offering customers a standardized design that simultaneously achieves reduced construction periods and cost savings.

Hanwha Ocean Marine Division Vice President Yudong Wan (4th from the left), ABS Vice President Matthew Tremblay (5th from the left), and other company officials are posing for a commemorative photo after the concept approval ceremony.

Hanwha Ocean Marine Division Vice President Yudong Wan (fifth from the left), BV Korea CEO Drago Pinteric (fourth from the left), and other company officials are posing for a commemorative photo after the concept approval ceremony.

West Africa is one of the markets where offshore plant demand is expected to grow, but it is also an area with challenging marine environmental conditions. Based on this achievement, Hanwha Ocean plans to accelerate the development of standard FPSOs that can also be deployed in other regions such as South America.

Hanwha Ocean’s Marine Business Division is pursuing a transformation toward becoming a solution provider by adopting an integrated contracting approach for floating offshore production facilities and offshore renewable energy projects to expand the offshore energy value chain.

A Hanwha Ocean official stated, “Offshore plant demand is expected to steadily grow mainly in Africa and South America. We will intensify efforts to strengthen competitiveness in the global offshore market through continuous technological innovation and product development.”