KOREA INSTITUTE OF GEOSCIENCE AND MINERAL RESOURCES

The first voyage of Tamhae III, the 21st century's most advanced underwater research vessel, 

which will powerfully cruise the world's oceans, begins.

The Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) held an inauguration ceremony for the state-of-the-art 3D/4D research vessel ‘Tamhae III’ at Yeongilman Port in Pohang on May 31, attended by about 250 participants, including Dr. Lee Pyeong-koo, President of KIGAM, Mr. Choi Nam-ho, Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Pohang Mayor Mr. Lee Kang-deok, and Mr. Yoo Sang-cheol, HJSC CEO.

Tamhae III is a 6,862-ton, high-performance 3D/4D geophysical survey vessel that can conduct underwater resource exploration in all sea areas around the world, including the continental shelf, ocean, and polar regions. In January 2021, KIGAM signed a contract with HJSC for detailed ship design and construction. This was followed by steel cutting in December 2021, keel laying in September 2022, and a launching/naming ceremony and test run in July last year.

In particular, taking the baton from Tamhae II, which has been Korea's only geophysical survey and research vessel and has conducted underwater resource exploration for 27 years since 1996, Tamhae III is now putting a new sail to carry out a larger and more important national mission.

Tamhae III is newly equipped with 400 units including a seismic wave receiving streamer, air gun system, and OBN (ocean bottom node type receiver), equipment launched on the bottom of the sea floor that records waves, expanding the scope of ocean seismic exploration. Moreover, it is equipped with ice-resistant (ICE-1B) and dynamic position control functions, making exploration in extreme environments such as polar regions possible.

Tamhae III can literally be said to be a research laboratory on the sea, with a much higher proportion of exploration equipment (about 50%) than those of other general research vessels.

Tamhae III carries out joint exploration of oil and gas resources on the domestic continental shelf and CCS monitoring exploration, as well as exploration of submarine resources around the world, identification of undersea geological disaster factors, and acquisition of undersea geological information. In addition, the scope of exploration, including international joint exploration of Arctic resources, will be expanded.

The vessel’s first exploration will begin in June in the Gunsan Basin in the West Sea. This first mission will find promising undersea CO₂ reservoirs with the goal of achieving carbon neutrality through climate change reduction.

President Lee Pyeong-koo said, “We are confident that Tamhae III will become a significant research laboratory on the sea that will promote the excellence of our undersea resource exploration technology to the world.”