Asia/Pacific News
South Korea Announces "Exciting Plans" to Develop LNG Bunkering Facility
The South Korean government has announced "exciting plans" to develop a liquid natural gas (LNG) bunkering facility, alongside its plans to construct a further 15 berths, at its flagship Busan New Port in the south of the country, MarineLink reports.
The LNG bunkering facility is expected to be completed by 2018.
Currently, the port operates 22 berths, with an additional eight currently under construction.
Busan Port Authority (BPA) said the planned additional 15 berths will increase container capacity at the port by 15.8 million TEU.
The new facilities will be a mix of container terminals, feeder terminals, and multipurpose terminals, and work will begin in stages based on actual cargo demand and under the coordination of central government.
"Our aim is to continually develop the port and preempt the rapidly evolving maritime transport industry to ensure that the port of Busan remains a key part of the global logistics chain and a major contributor to the economic development of the region," said KIM Li-tack, BPA President.
In March Boston Consulting Group (BCG) forecasted that LNG could account for 27 percent of the bunker market by 2025.
