South Korea’s Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, led by Kang Do-Hyung, along with the Ulsan Port Authority under president Kim Jae-gyun, announced a historic achievement: the successful completion of the world’s first ship-to-ship (STS) green methanol supply to a very large container ship (16k) at Ulsan Port in South Korea.
To pave the way for this groundbreaking milestone, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries established essential institutional frameworks, including the ‘Guidelines for Approval of Self-Safety Management Plan for Methanol Supply,’ and conducted two methanol supply demonstrations in collaboration with the Ulsan Port Authority in July and November of the previous year.
“Competition among international ports to preempt the market by building ports that supply sustainable marine fuel is accelerating. Under the goal of achieving net zero by 2050 in the global shipping sector, we will make all-out efforts to strengthen competitiveness so Korea can lead the global trend of switching to sustainable fuels,” stated Kang Do-Hyung, the minister of Oceans and Fisheries.
According to a statement, with global competition among ports for the methanol fuel market intensifying, the success of this demonstration holds immense significance.
Also, this accomplishment is poised to solidify Korean ports’ reputation worldwide as sustainable marine fueling hubs while fostering the growth of Korea’s sustainable marine fueling industry in the years to come.
Moving forward, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Ulsan Port Authority remain committed to enhancing related systems, such as establishing standard operating procedures for methanol supply. Additionally, they will continue collaborating with the private sector to ensure the economic viability of sustainable marine fuel supply.
“Following the success of the world’s first green methanol PTS bunkering for container ships in July last year, Ulsan Port has succeeded in green methanol STS bunkering for a very large container ship. We will do our best to proactively respond to the paradigm shift in ship fuel so that Ulsan Port can be reborn as a hub port for sustainable marine fuel supply,” noted Kim Jae-gyun, the president of Ulsan Port Authority.
