[Courtesy of Hyundai Heavy Industries]
Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world's largest shipbuilder, said Monday it has signed a deal to built a naval tanker for New Zealand.
Hyundai Heavy said the 23,000-ton new vessel, to be delivered by the end of 2019, would be ice-strengthened for Antarctic operations.
New Zealand's media said the $346 million tanker would replace the 30-year-old tanker HMNZS Endeavour, which is due to retire in 2018. The replacement tanker will be able to refuel two ships at once, carry and refuel helicopters, produce and store fresh water and transport bulk goods.
New Zealand Defense Minister Gerry Brownlee reportedly said the deal would help show the country's long-term commitment to its joint work in the Antarctic with the United States.
"It is important that New Zealand has a significant asset capable of supporting our presence in the Antarctic and our interests in the Southern Ocean more generally," Brownlee was quoted as saying.
Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
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