SINGAPORE - Sembcorp Marine said on Monday it has agreed to buy a 12 per cent stake in GraviFloat, which designs and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) terminals.
The Singapore-listed marine and offshore engineering group will pay US$4 million (S$5 million) for the stake, which "represents a new business venture" for the group, it said.
GraviFloat's technology, which is pending a patent, allows LNG terminals to be fully built and completed at a shipyard and installed in shallow waters to facilitate direct ship loading of LNG.
Its terminals are designed to offer a more cost-competitive solution compared with floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) and land terminals, and can be designed for both liquefaction and receiving terminal services, Sembcorp Marine said.
GraviFloat was incorporated in Norway in 2006 and is headquartered in Bergen.
"Our investment in GraviFloat represents the group's ongoing quest to stay ahead and actively participate across a broad spectrum of the offshore oil and gas value chain," said Mr Wong Weng Sun, president and chief executive of Sembcorp Marine.