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| Contact: |
EnerSea Transport LLC |
|
John P. Dunlop |
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Houston, TX |
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+1 713-963-9333 |
| Contact: |
"K"Line |
|
Aoki Hiromichi |
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Tokyo, Japan |
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+81 3-3595-5478 |
| Contact: |
Hyundai Heavy Industries |
|
D.U. Kim |
|
Ulsan, Korea |
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+82 52-230-3006 |
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| [For immediate release] |
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| EnerSea Transport’s VOTRANS™ Gas Carrier
Achieves "Class Approval in Principle" Designation from ABS |
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| Houston (May 8, 2003)
- EnerSea Transport LLC, in association with its maritime partners, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha,
Ltd. ("K"Line) and Hyundai Heavy Industries, Co., Ltd. (HHI), announced today
that its VOTRANS gas carrier has achieved "Class Approval in Principle" (AIP)
from ABS (American Bureau of Shipping). This marks a major milestone in the companies’
ability to deliver compressed natural gas (CNG) through the world’s first commercial
large scale marine gas transport system of its kind. |
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| This achievement enables
EnerSea to commence commercial deployment of its VOTRANS gas transport services to
industry at a time when current and projected gas supplies in the world’s major
energy-consuming countries are approaching critical shortfalls. With U.S. natural gas
demand projected to reach 32 trillion cubic feet by 2020, industry and government alike
are seeking innovative solutions. |
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| "Undeveloped gas
resources in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, Atlantic Canada, Alaska, Trinidad, Venezuela
and Colombia are all ideal prospects for helping meet U.S. gas demand using EnerSea’s
transport services," explained Britton. EnerSea’s plans for deployment will enable
gas operators to begin shipping these new volumes in early 2007. |
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| EnerSea and its partners
recently concluded a comprehensive engineering program that started in June 2002 and
culminated with the AIP award for its "V800" class vessel design. The V800 is
designed to carry 700 to 800 million cubic feet (mmcf) of natural gas, depending on the
specific gas composition. EnerSea intends to use this vessel to support economic gas
transportation services for applications with average supply rates ranging from 300 to 500
mmcf per day to markets up to 2,500 miles away. |
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| EnerSea also offers V600 and
V1000 vessel classes that will enable the company to support production rates ranging from
150 to 700 mmcf per day over distances up to 3,000 miles. |
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| The ability to safely and
efficiently operate and manage gas fleets is of paramount importance to EnerSea.
"K"Line joined EnerSea’s maritime partnership to support the engineering
program and to develop vessel operations procedures. "K"Line will own and
operate the initial VOTRANS vessels by way of dedicated time charter agreements. |
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| "I am delighted at the
considerable progress and robust results that have been achieved in this truly unique
endeavor," said "K"Line’s Director Hisashi Yasui. "We see enormous
potential for working with EnerSea to become the world’s leader in compressed natural
gas transportation, which promises to be a major feature of "K"Line’s
wide-ranging gas shipping services." |
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| The VOTRANS ship design was a
collaborative effort, with HHI contributing its significant ship design and construction
expertise. |
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| "As an active member of
the VOTRANS design team over the past year, we are very pleased to receive Approval in
Principle," said I.Y. Chung, HHI's Chief Operation Officer, Marketing Division.
"We look forward to building the world’s first commercial CNG vessel with many more
to follow for EnerSea’s transport service." |
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| VOTRANS utilizes EnerSea’s
patented and proprietary technology that delivers a substantially more flexible and cost
effective CNG transport system than has been previously possible. With design storage
pressures of well under 2000 psi, about half that of other CNG technologies, EnerSea’s
team was able to dramatically reduce the thickness and weight of the steel required for
the containment system, thus increasing storage efficiency and reducing overall cost. |
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| VOTRANS is designed to land
natural gas via cost-effective offshore gas ports, thus eliminating the need for expensive
new onshore gas terminals which are more difficult to permit and build. The recently
enacted "Maritime Transport Security Act of 2002" promotes the delivery of CNG
through offshore gas ports, and will provide for safe and secure delivery of natural gas
supplies into the U.S. |
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| Other key participants in
EnerSea’s engineering program included Paragon Engineering and A.C. McClure Naval
Architects, both of which have been involved from the beginning in EnerSea’s VOTRANS
development. |
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|
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| Details for Houston-based EnerSea Transport LLC can be
found at www.EnerSea.com. |
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