Technology & Steel Application - News

Starting from February, POSCO began supplying all the stainless steel for membrane-type Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carriers being produced by Korea Gas Corporation. There are two types of containment systems used by LNG carriers: Moss type and membrane-type. Moss-type carriers hold the LNG in four or five large tanks, supported by the vessel's hull. Membrane-type carriers make better use of space by having a single tank made from STS cold-rolled steel, built right into the hull. Compared with Moss-type carriers with their cylindrical tanks, membrane-type carriers have greater loading efficiency and are more economical because their non-cylindrical tanks can be larger. Because of the economic advantages of membrane-type carriers, demand for this type of ship is on the rise these days. Up until now, an overseas engineering company owned the exclusive rights to membrane design technology, which is why domestic shipbuilding companies producing membrane-type carriers in Korea had to pay royalties. In 2014, however, Korea Gas Corporation successfully developed its own membrane design technology, so there is no longer a need to pay royalties abroad. POSCO decided to apply World Premium STS steel to the world’s first membrane-type LNG carriers. POSCO was the only manufacturer of STS steel for membrane material; however, with this deal, POSCO became the only supplier of STS steel for membrane material for both the Korean and international markets.

Using POSCO's STS steel, the KC-1 will be Korea's first membrane-type LNG carrier, offering drastic improvements on vaporization loss compared to previous models, while enhancing efficiency with gas transportation and economic feasibility. Based on POSCO's cooperation with Korea Gas Corporation in developing membrane carrier technology, POSCO established an optimized supply chain for saving cryogenic LNG from developing STS steel to producing/supplying materials. POSCO's efforts in customer-oriented solution marketing have led to new supply orders. Using its advanced technology and high quality, POSCO plans to gain market share in the energy market by increasing the supply of stainless-type materials to future storage tanks for land, and small-sized tanker trucks. Starting from February, POSCO began supplying all the stainless steel for membrane-type Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carriers being produced by Korea Gas Corporation.