Hanwha Ocean awards GTT tank design for two new LNG carriers by 2029

French naval engineering firm GTT said Oct. 14, 2026 it won an order from Hanwha Ocean to design cryogenic membrane cargo tanks for two liquefied natural gas carriers.

The tank engineering contract ties into a 680 billion won ($500 million) shipbuilding order that Hanwha Ocean booked on Sept. 23, 2026 from an African shipowner.

Each vessel will carry 174,000 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas. The two hulls represent roughly 3% of Hanwha Ocean's annual merchant shipbuilding revenue target.

GTT will fit the vessels with its proprietary NO96 Super+ membrane containment system. The system incorporates reinforced polyurethane foam panels rather than traditional plywood boxes to insulate the cryogenic tanks.

The insulation panels reduce the vessel boil-off rate to 0.085% of cargo volume per day. That thermal performance prevents supercooled gas stored at minus 163 degrees Celsius from venting prematurely.

Hanwha Ocean will build the two vessels at its Geoje shipyard on South Korea's southern coast. The contract locks down high-value drydock construction slots through late 2029.

South Korean shipyards hold more than 70% of global delivery slots for large LNG carriers scheduled through 2028. Tight slot availability has kept newbuild contract prices near record highs of $260 million per vessel.

The design order reinforces the near-total dependence of South Korean shipbuilders on foreign containment intellectual property. Domestic yards build most of the world's large gas carriers but license their core tank technology from France.

Royalties paid to GTT typically absorb roughly 5% of the total construction cost of each LNG vessel. That fee structure transfers approximately 17 billion won ($12.5 million) per 340 billion won carrier to the French engineering firm.

South Korean yards and state gas utility KOGAS previously attempted to commercialize indigenous containment systems named KC-1 and KC-2. Technical disputes, insulation debonding issues and cargo tank frosting halted broader adoption by international fleet operators.

Commercial fleet operators consistently demand GTT membrane systems because maritime insurers and charterers favor their proven operational track record. As a result, South Korean yards remain captive buyers of French engineering licenses.

GTT booked the engineering order in its third-quarter financial accounts. The formal announcement followed Hanwha Ocean's regulatory filing to the Korea Exchange on Sept. 28, 2026.

The French group held orders for 272 LNG carriers in its core business order book as of June 30, 2026. GTT licenses two main technologies to Korean yards: the NO96 series and the Mark III system.

Hanwha Ocean has long specialized in the NO96 design family, which relies on thin membranes made of invar alloy. Invar contains 36% nickel and displays a very low thermal expansion coefficient when chilled.

Competitors HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering and Samsung Heavy Industries also build LNG carriers exclusively under GTT licenses. Samsung Heavy Industries focuses primarily on GTT's Mark III Flex membrane design using stainless steel primary barriers.

The licensing ecosystem controls the procurement chain for cryogenic materials. Specialized foam panels, invar alloy coils and secondary barrier membranes must come from suppliers certified by GTT in Europe, South Korea and Japan.

Chinese shipbuilders are expanding their own licensed LNG capacity under GTT engineering supervision. Shipyards including Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding and Jiangnan Shipyard captured more than 20% of global LNG carrier contracts placed over the past two years.

Growing Chinese yard capacity threatens South Korean market dominance, but both national shipbuilding cohorts share identical royalty burdens owed to Paris. The fee model ensures GTT captures revenue regardless of whether orders land in Geoje or Shanghai.

Hanwha Ocean set the official contract period from Sept. 23, 2026 to Nov. 2, 2029 in its regulatory filing. Detailed engineering reviews will run through 2027 before steel cutting begins in Geoje.

GTT plans to deliver the completed tank design package to the shipyard ahead of tank erection milestones in 2028. Final delivery of both 174,000-cubic-meter vessels will take place by the fourth quarter of 2029.

The public notices do not state the financial value of the tank engineering contract. GTT and Hanwha Ocean have not published the exact royalty sum or payment milestones tied to the hulls.

Hanwha Ocean identified the counterparty only as an African region shipowner in its regulatory filing. The shipbuilder did not confirm maritime trade reports identifying British carrier Zodiac Maritime as the ultimate buyer.

The two-vessel order brings Hanwha Ocean's total disclosed LNG carrier bookings to 19 vessels for the 2026 calendar year.