Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Marine Machinery & Engine received orders from Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), Korea, for four Ultra Steam Turbine (UST) plants to be installed in four liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers HHI is constructing for Petroliam Nasional Berhad (PETRONAS), the state-owned oil and gas provider in Malaysia. The orders, which were received with an option on additional USTs for four more carriers, marks the first time the MHI group has sold USTs outside Japan. Delivery is scheduled for 2015.
The four UST plants on order consist of four marine turbines and eight boilers. The technology incorporated into the UST was developed by MHI independently. The adoption of a reheating cycle results in a near 15% improvement in fuel efficiency compared to conventional steam propulsion plants, making MHI USTs more economical and environmentally compatible.
The USTs on order from HHI will serve as the main engines of PETRONAS’s four new LNG carriers, which will play a major role in transporting LNG produced in PETRONAS’s future LNG projects. MHI-MME is currently undertaking the manufacture of USTs for eight ships under construction by MHI.