Danish pump manufacturer Svanehøj has secured two significant orders from Korean shipyards Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) and Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI). In cooperation with French tank designer GTT, Svanehøj will in Q3 of 2021 deliver fuel, cargo and spray pumps for four Very Large Ethane Carriers (VLEC). For Svanehøj, the two orders represent a total value of more than 7.5 million USD.
In 2019, Svanehøj was chosen by SHI and HHI as supplier of pumps for the first six of a new type of VLEC, which is bigger and more complex than previous ethane carriers. Svanehøj has now received orders from the two shipyards for an additional four VLECs.
The 10 new VLECs serve as a more economical and viable solution for large-scale ethane transportation with more than 98,000 m3 of total cargo capacity.
Traditionally, Svanehøj has focused on developing deepwell cargo pumps for smaller gas carriers and has held a strong position in this segment for many years. But in recent years, the gas market has undergone some positive changes, and Svanehøj has taken the opportunity to meet an increasing demand for larger vessels. Four years ago, Svanehøj launched a unique, patented fuel pump for gas, thereby offering complete deepwell pump solutions that can handle all types of gas such as LNG, LPG, ammoniac and – in this case – ethane.
Over the years, Svanehøj has installed cargo pumps in more than 1,100 gas carriers all over the world. It is a well-known fact that deepwell pumps offer efficiency optimization and potentially huge cost savings. But this is the first time that Svanehøj’s deepwell gas pumps are used on such a large scale, which is why this VLEC project is of huge strategic significance for the company.
Courtesy of Svanehøj Group.