Significant milestone reached for India’s natural gas ambitions

Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass), an international ship classification society, has classed India’s first LNG-FSRU (Floating Storage Regasification Unit) marking a milestone in India’s energy shift towards natural gas. Constructed at Hyundai Shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea, the 180,000 cu.m FSRU which is flagged in India, is designed for continuous operations without the need for drydocking over a period of 20 years. The unit is assigned class notation for 20 years extended interval between successive dry-dockings and complies with the requirements of IRClass Rules and Indian Flag for this purpose. The unit is owned by Triumph Offshore Pvt Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Swan Energy Ltd, an India-based listed company.

The vessel can operate in two distinct modes – LNG Carrier Mode and Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) mode. This allows the utilisation of a FSRU for receiving LNG from LNG carriers, regasification of the LNG and sending it out.

The vessel complies with the recently updated Rules of IRClass applicable for LNG carriers provided with regasification systems and takes into account various risks associated with such systems by appropriate risk control measures. The updated IRClass Main Rules for Seagoing ships, covers the requirements for regasification systems in a separate chapter addressing various aspects such as systems design, fire safety, emergency shutdown arrangements, survey and testing requirements etc. The vessel has also been verified with respect to the requirements of the IGC Code and IRClass Rules for Gas carriers.

With strong government support and improved infrastructure in India, the prospects for natural gas are expected to rise significantly to meet growing energy demands in the country. This is also in line with the Indian government vision to build a gas-based economy and increase the share of natural gas in the primary energy mix to 15% by 2030, up from 6% today. This will also contribute towards IMO’s aim of reducing GHG emissions.

“As we anticipate energy demand to soar in India, it is important to move towards the use of clean energy to meet that need. Undertaking this project demonstrates our commitment towards a greener future, and we at IRClass are delighted to play an essential role in meeting that goal.” Commented IRClass’ Joint Managing Director Vijay Arora.