HANJIN HEAVY INDUSTRIES

- Successfully handed over a 5000TEU cutting-edge multipurpose emergency response ship, displaying excellence in technology
- 10 times greater than conventional oil spill response vessels; able to respond early even in bad weather; opens a new era in national disaster response capability

On May 26, HJ Shipbuilding & Construction (HJSC) held a christening ceremony for ‘ENDAM’, the Republic of Korea’s first multipurpose large oil spill response vessel (5000TEU) ordered by the Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation (KOEM), proving its excellence in technology. 

The formal occasion was celebrated at Yeongdo Shipyard with the attendance of nearly 100 officials including Han Gi-jun, CEO of KOEM, and officials from HJSC. According to tradition, the ship was named by a woman, Nam Yang-hui, CEO Mr. Han’s wife, announcing the birth of ‘ENDAM’.  

‘ENDAM’ is a pure Korean word meaning, ‘a fence surrounding all sides’. It was named with the commitment to protect people from any marine accidents and disasters just like a solid wall. To draw attention and interest from the public about the large oil spill response vessel construction program, the KOEM asked the public to name its new ship in 2020. Among about 1,200 suggestions, ‘ENDAM’ was finally chosen. 

So far, small and mid-sized ships (smaller than 500TEU) have been mostly sent to marine accident scenes so that it has been hard to get near the accident site in bad weather or collapse accident. Therefore, there has been a continued demand for a large oil spill response vessel which can respond to such accidents early even under unfavorable weather conditions. 

According to the large oil spill response vessel construction project launched by the government, HJSC built the nation’s first 5000TEU multipurpose disaster response vessel. This 102m-long and 20.6m-wide ship is about 10 times bigger than conventional oil spill response ships. This cutting-edge vessel is able to operate even in extreme conditions (2m in wave height, 10.3m/s of wind speed) and respond to large-scale marine oil spill accidents in a fast and effective fashion. 

In addition, the new vessel can remove oil from the surface of water fast, using its 15m-long sweeping arm (a fence-type structure connecting an oil fence with the vessel). With a wave attenuation system designed to absorb vibration from sea wave, this ship is able to operate even in bad weather conditions. In normal times, it is used in dredging, removing floating oceanic debris, extinguishing fire and towing. When a marine spill occurs, it is dispatched right away. 

HJSC won an order to build this ship in 2019. Since then, the South Korean shipbuilder has devoted all its energy and efforts to the construction of the vessel at Yeongdo Shipyard. After completing sea trials and various equipment tests, the global shipbuilding company successfully finished a dredging test this year with a great support from Marine Environment Policy Division of Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Gunsan Regional Office of Oceans and Fisheries. 

An official from HJSC said, “We are very proud of having the nation’s first multipurpose large oil spill response vessel designed to handle marine accidents effectively.” He continued, “We anticipate great performances from the new sea guardian ‘ENDAM’. We are going to keep building and providing cutting-edge special purpose and government ships based on our advanced shipbuilding technology and make a contribution to the improvement of national capabilities.”
 
Meanwhile, the KOEM plans to operate the new vessel after the ship-naming ceremony.