Denmark’s Port Esbjerg and Korea’s Port of Ulsan have formed a strategic partnership to drive innovation and sustainability in the maritime industry through both parties’ experience in handling hydrogen and ammonia as well as offshore wind projects.
Port Esbjerg revealed the collaboration via social media, stating that the port sees significant opportunities to leverage Ulsan’s expertise in handling hydrogen and ammonia.
Likewise, Ulsan sees immense potential in partnering with Port Esbjerg as it has been designated as Korea’s installation port for offshore wind projects.
Located by the North Sea, the Port of Esbjerg is expected to play a central role in the expansion of offshore wind, where 134 GW is planned to be established by 2030 and 300 GW by 2050.
In 2023, the Danish port signed a cooperation agreement with PensionDanmark under which it will receive DKK 5.8 billion (about €779 million) for the construction of facilities for the production of offshore wind turbines.
In addition, around €94 million was earmarked for terminals for handling Power-to-X and CCS, and around €67 million is expected to be invested in the development of Port of Esbjerg as a multi-modal hub.
The investment will also go towards the development of flex terminals, logistics properties, and facilities for green fuels.
On the other hand, Ulsan Port is working on becoming a low-carbon energy hub and supporting methanol-fueled ships under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the international classification society Korean Register (KR).
In addition, the port plans to build a clean hydrogen and ammonia terminal at Ulsan New Port by 2030 to store ammonia to produce and supply hydrogen.
The new collaboration comes on the back of a recent visit by a Danish delegation, including representatives from Port Esbjerg, Mayor Jesper Frost Rasmussen of Esbjerg Municipality, and officials from the Royal Danish Embassy in Seoul, to Ulsan where several Danish maritime companies are already well-represented.