Korean Register (KR) announced on Feb. 23 that it participated as the lead organization in a national project named “Development of Technology for Integrated Management of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Ships,” supported by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.
As a result, it developed an aftertreatment system capable of effectively reducing exhaust gases generated from ammonia engines and successfully conducted its demonstration on land.
It is the first microwave catalytic heating type exhaust gas aftertreatment system to be applied to exhaust gases of MW-class ammonia (NH₃) engines in Korea.
KR carried out the technology development jointly with EcoPro HN and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE).
The prototype’s durability and performance were proven through long-term operations at the Korean Register Green Ship Test & Certification Center (KR TCC) located in Gunsan.
This project was conducted under the policy support of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Korea Institute of Marine Science & Technology Promotion (KIMST) and involved the participation of numerous major players in the industrial, academia and research sectors including KR, EcoPro HN, HD KSOE, HD Hyundai Marine Solution and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology to carry out the entire process of technology development and demonstration.
Officials with Korean Register, EcoPro HN and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE attend a session to demonstrate an aftertreatment system capable of effectively reducing exhaust gases generated from ammonia engines, which were jointly developed by the institutions.
Ammonia is drawing much attention as a next-generation carbon-free fuel for the shipbuilding and shipping industries because it does not emit carbon dioxide or sulfur oxides during combustion and is easy to store and transport.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) also projected in its 2050 Carbon Neutrality Roadmap that ammonia will account for approximately 44% of total ship fuel by 2050.
However, exhaust gases from ammonia engines may contain air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and unburned ammonia, making it essential to secure aftertreatment technologies to effectively reduce these pollutants.
These pollutants can be reduced by converting them into harmless substances using catalysts, and the technology to precisely control the catalyst’s activation temperature is considered a key factor determining the commercialization of the system.
The newly developed system significantly improves exhaust gas purification performance by efficiently activating the catalyst through the application of a catalytic heating method utilizing microwaves.
This enables effective exhaust gas reduction under various operating conditions and is designed to ensure stable operation while minimizing fuel consumption even amidst changing navigation environments.
2026 Annual General Meeting
KR announced that it held its 64th Annual General Meeting at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Feb. 24.
At the meeting, the KR General Assembly passed the 2025 settlement of accounts and the approval of the appointment of three new full-time executives, following reports including the business report.
KR reported that it racked up 206 billion won in revenue and a registered fleet of 90.35 million tons last year, driven by active sales activities and an increase in new ship inspection volumes.
In particular, it confirmed that KR’s technical capabilities and international credibility were continuously expanding with overseas shipowners accounting for 71% of the vessels newly registered in 2025.
At the general meeting, a proposal to appoint full-time executives to form a new management team was approved as well.
Opening SeaTrust Software Hub
KR announced on Feb. 20 that it has revamped its technology software website and newly opened the SeaTrust Software Hub.
This revamp focused on providing technology software information offered by KR in a more intuitive and systematic manner, while enabling the efficient management of the entire process — including software utilization, Q&A, and the exchange of feedback on improvements — on a single integrated platform.
The key feature of this renewal is the introduction of an AI-based feedback processing system.
The new website is equipped with a function that analyzes user questions using AI to automatically assign and forward them to appropriate persons.
Additionally, the AI, trained on various technical documents, manuals, email records, and past feedback data, automatically generates recommended answers.
With a structure where the quality of answers automatically improves as Q&A data is continuously accumulated, the speed and accuracy of inquiry responses are also expected to ascend significantly.
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