McDermott's storage business, CB&I has signed a memorandum of understanding through its partnership with Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS) to further develop the hydrogen economy in South Korea, a press release reported.
"Viable storage solutions on both ship and shore will be fundamental for South Korea to realize its carbon neutrality goals," SVP of CB&I, Cesar Canals, said in the release. "With ongoing research and development efforts well underway to scale up capacity thresholds for liquid hydrogen storage, CB&I is honored to join KOGAS in setting the pace for the rapid development of a large-scale hydrogen economy for South Korea."
The MoU will help both parties study potential strategies of development of large-scale liquid hydrogen storage.
The initiative supports South Korea’s plans to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 through the process of coal-fired power generation using “renewable sources and internal combustion engine vehicles with hydrogen-powered and battery-based electric vehicles,” a press release explains.
In correlation with the efforts, KOGAS has grown into the leading LNG-importing company in the country. The company operates four LNG regasification terminals, spanning 4,945 km of natural gas pipelines.
"Hydrogen has emerged as a key enabler to meet these decarbonization goals and KOGAS will play a leading role in building the infrastructure for hydrogen shipping, storage and distribution to make these ambitions a reality," executive vice president of KOGAS, Seung Lee, said in the release.
Based in Houston, CB&I specializes in designing field-erected pressure spheres capable of storing liquid hydrogen at temperatures of minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit. With more than 60 years in the industry, the company will soon complete its liquid hydrogen sphere in Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA, which is considered the largest in the world.