South Korea is dominating the global floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility market. A FLNG facility is a floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) unit that can purify, liquefy, and store natural gas extracted from the sea.

The Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said on Nov. 17 that Korea has achieved the feat of building all four large FLNG facilities around the world, including the Coral-Sul FLNG facility which left Korea for Mozambique on Nov. 16. The ministry said Korean shipbuilders have demonstrated their overwhelming competitiveness in the global FLNG facility market.

A christening ceremony for the Coral Sul FLNG facility, which costs US$2.4 billion, was held at the shipyard of Samsung Heavy Industries on Geoje Island on the southern coast with the attendance of Korean President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook and Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi and first lady Isaura Nyusi.

The Coral Sul FLNG facility is Mozambique’s first FLNG facility. It will move to a coral gas field in Area 4 in Mozambique and start LNG production in earnest beginning from next year.

The Area 4 mining field is located in the Atlantic Ocean near Mozambique. It is considered the largest natural gas field found in the 21st century. Its reserves are estimated at 85 trillion cubic feet, an amount that can meet Korea’s LNG demand for 30 years.

Korea is deeply involved in the development of the Mozambique gas field. In 2020, Korea won orders for 17 LNG carriers (US$3.1 billion), which will be used for the Mozambique Area 1 project. Experts say that Korea is likely to win additional orders for LNG carriers if LNG production increases further thanks to the development of the Area 4 gas field. Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) holds a 10 percent stake in Area 4.

Meanwhile, President Moon said at a meeting with his aides on Nov. 18 that the Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi disclosed his plan to order another FLNG facility, which is of the same size as the Coral Sul facility, and appreciated the excellence of Korean-made ships.