Hyundai Heavy Industries said Thursday that it has recently agreed with a U.S. drilling company to provide low-emission ships starting this August.

It is the first time that a Korean shipbuilder has exported a drilling ship equipped with an emissions reduction system, the company claimed.

Hyundai Heavy plans to provide three drilling ships to Houston, Texas-based Rowan Companies from August that will have 18 units of the company’s emissions reduction system.

The system, which dissolves nitrogen oxides through the company-developed catalyst, can reduce the generation of the toxic pollutant by more than 95 percent, officials said.

The company predicted the global demand for low-emission ships would soar in the coming years as related regulations toughen.

For instance, the International Maritime Organization plans to implement new emissions regulations in 2016 that will oblige companies to cut nitrogen oxide emissions by 80 percent from the current allowable level.

“Due to its expensive price amounting to $600 million and cutting-edge technologies, tougher regulations are imposed on drilling ships. Our technical superiority has been recognized as we succeeded in providing low-emission ships this time,” said a company official.

Together with the Selective Catalytic Reduction-type ships, the company said that it was also working on developing the Exhaust Gas Recirculation-type, which is widely adopted in vehicles.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)