Hanwha Ocean has obtained Approval in Principle from two leading global classification societies for its low-carbon standard FPSO design framework, marking a significant step in the South Korean shipbuilder's strategy to embed emissions reduction capabilities directly into its offshore plant standardization program.

Twin Certifications From DNV and ABS

The company announced on August 25 that it received AIP from Norway's DNV validating the low-carbon design framework of its standard FPSO concept.

Simultaneously, the American Bureau of Shipping granted its own AIP and issued a Statement of Fact covering Hanwha Ocean's Project Sustainability Execution Plan, known by the abbreviation PSEP.

DNV's certification focused on verifying that greenhouse gas emission reduction technologies applicable to key emission sources have been systematically reflected in the FPSO design.

ABS, for its part, confirmed that the sustainability execution framework is capable of implementing and managing carbon reduction targets and energy efficiency improvements throughout actual project execution, rather than treating such goals as declaratory commitments.

The PSEP itself is defined by Hanwha Ocean as a structured execution system that specifies responsible organizations, key performance indicators, and verification procedures for sustainability goals, ensuring those objectives are managed in practice across the duration of a project.

Building a Reusable Low-Carbon Technology Platform

The certifications extend an existing standardization strategy that Hanwha Ocean has pursued across multiple regional FPSO designs. In 2024, the company developed a standard FPSO applicable across West Africa and obtained certification from ABS and France's Bureau Veritas. Earlier in 2025, it developed a standard FPSO optimized for South America and secured approvals from both ABS and DNV.

The new low-carbon standard FPSO platform builds on those regional standard designs.

Rather than reviewing and applying low-carbon technologies on a project-by-project basis, Hanwha Ocean is constructing a framework in which verified emissions-reduction technologies are standardized and can be repeatedly deployed across multiple projects according to each client's requirements.

The company intends to package these verified low-carbon technologies into reusable technology packages that can be selected and configured to meet the specifications of individual projects. The PSEP obtained from ABS is intended to serve as the baseline sustainability execution framework for future FPSO projects.

Market Demand Driving Emissions Focus in FPSO Procurement

Hanwha Ocean cited a discernible shift in how major global energy companies are evaluating new offshore project proposals. Environmental competitiveness has emerged as one of the key assessment criteria in FPSO project tendering, with client organizations increasingly reinforcing carbon reduction requirements as part of the procurement process.

Major offshore plant companies have responded by expanding their low-carbon design capabilities and sustainability execution frameworks.

The company stated that the dual certification positions it to compete more effectively for FPSO orders against this backdrop of tightening client expectations around emissions performance.

Planned Application Across the Project Lifecycle

Hanwha Ocean plans to deploy the verified low-carbon design and project execution frameworks across all stages of engagement with clients, from initial commercial discussions through bidding, front-end engineering design, and full project execution.

The certification infrastructure is intended to be applied not as a one-time demonstration but as a repeatable foundation for future offshore contracts. Philippe Levy, president of Hanwha Ocean's Energy Plant Unit, and Hasan Turkmen, president of ABS Far East Asia, attended an AIP presentation ceremony, as did Vidar Dolonen, managing director of DNV Korea and Japan.

A company representative stated that the significance of the certification lies in having validated both axes simultaneously, low-carbon design and sustainability execution, and described plans to develop the verified results into low-carbon technology packages and sustainability execution frameworks that can be reused across future projects to strengthen both order-winning competitiveness and project execution capability.