Hanwha Ocean is taking its shipbuilding and offshore engineering expertise into the fast-growing AI infrastructure market with a 60MW Floating Data Center (FDC), designed as an alternative to conventional land-based facilities facing power, land and cooling constraints.
The South Korean shipbuilder said it will unveil its independently developed 60MW FDC model for the first time at Gastech 2026, which opens in Thailand on Sept. 14.
The event will mark the first time Hanwha Ocean has presented a physical model of its FDC concept to the global market. The company plans to introduce the technology and business model to global energy companies, data center operators, shipowners and other industry participants.
Taking Data Centers Offshore
The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is driving demand for data centers and, in turn, large amounts of electricity and cooling capacity. Building new facilities on land, however, can be constrained by limited sites, grid capacity, cooling requirements and opposition from local communities.
Hanwha Ocean sees offshore data centers as one possible way to address some of those challenges.
Its FDC is designed to generate power offshore while using seawater for cooling, potentially improving energy efficiency and reducing dependence on scarce land near major population and business centers.
The company has also adopted a modular design that allows the configuration to be adjusted according to the location and requirements of individual customers.
Power generation and supply systems, server types and overall data center capacity can be configured differently depending on a customer's electricity requirements, IT infrastructure and operating environment.
Combining Shipbuilding with Energy and Data Technologies
The project also represents an attempt by Hanwha Ocean to extend its traditional shipbuilding and offshore capabilities into digital infrastructure.
The company plans to combine its expertise in designing and constructing large floating structures with Hanwha Group's capabilities in data centers, power and energy, operations and maintenance, and security.
Hanwha Ocean recently received Approval in Principle, or AiP, from the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) for the conceptual design of the 60MW FDC. The approval provides an early-stage assessment of the technical feasibility of the concept, although further engineering and commercial development will be required before deployment.
A commercial floating data center would still have to address issues ranging from power generation and high-capacity network connections to reliable server operations in a marine environment and overall construction and operating costs.
Still, the concept is drawing attention as AI infrastructure demand puts increasing pressure on power grids and available land, opening a potential new market where offshore engineering and digital infrastructure converge.
Zero-Carbon LNG Carrier Concept Also on Display
At Gastech 2026, Hanwha Ocean will also showcase a model of a 174,000-cubic-meter LNG carrier under development with an ammonia gas turbine-based electric propulsion system.
The company aims to develop the vessel as a zero-carbon propulsion platform that does not use pilot oil even during the ignition process.
By presenting both the floating data center and next-generation LNG carrier, Hanwha Ocean is seeking to demonstrate two directions for its future business: decarbonizing its core shipbuilding operations and expanding offshore engineering capabilities into new infrastructure markets.
“Gastech 2026 is a meaningful opportunity for us to introduce the floating data center, which we have been developing as a future growth business, to the global market for the first time,” said Son Young-chang, executive vice president and head of Hanwha Ocean’s Product Strategy & Technology Institute.
“We will combine the technological expertise accumulated in shipbuilding and offshore engineering with Hanwha Group’s energy and data capabilities to offer a new solution that addresses the limitations of land-based data centers and establish a leading position in the global FDC market,” Son said.
