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Hyundai Glovis, a logistics company headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, and a unit of the Hyundai Kia Automotive Group, signed a deal with Trafigura, a Swiss multinational commodity trading company, to enter the gas transportation business.
The shipping deal will pave the way for Hyundai Glovis to officially enter the gas shipping market. It was said that the agreement marks the day when the Korean firm slowly moves away from car carriers and shifts to building a hydrogen value chain.
The logistics unit of the Hyundai Group revealed about the deal with Trafigura on Sunday, Sept. 5. It shared that it will be getting into the gas shipping market with its target date of 2024 after striking a multi-year deal with the Geneva headquartered company.
According to The Korea Herald, the deal will have Hyundai Glovis carry liquefied natural gas and ammonia for up to 10 years and these will be sold in the global market. As part of the new business, the company is set to construct two very large gas carriers or VLGC that measures 86,000 square meters in capacity. It was said that the two vessels entail ₩200 billion or around $173.2 million investment from Hyundai.
The amount is huge because the VLGCs must be made with special materials so they can hold the ammonia. It was said that just about 10% of all the VLGCs in the world have such features so it will really be sturdy and safe. Hyundai said that these materials are definitely different from what they use in LPG carriers.
“We have proved our competitiveness in the gas shipping industry through a long-term deal with a global commodity trading company,” a Hyundai Glovis official stated. “We will also see the process of building a hydrogen value chain gather speed. We plan to carry liquefied hydrogen and take the lead in global hydrogen distribution.”
Trafigura is one of the world’s leading and largest commodities trading firms. In last year alone, it earned around ₩173 trillion and ₩3.4 trillion in operating profit. Its partnership with Hyundai Glovis is its first step towards its foray into new ventures. Finally, Yonhap News Agency reported that Hyundai’s logistic arm that usually carries cars will now establish its hydrogen delivery business to meet the growing demand for clean fuel around the world.
