ABS has awarded Approval in Principle for a nuclear powered 15,000 TEU containership concept developed with the Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering (KRISO) and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI). The design uses a small modular reactor built on a marine molten salt reactor architecture. The AIP confirms the concept meets applicable class requirements at the design stage, though it is not an approval to build.
KRISO developed the vessel concept, KAERI designed the marine molten salt reactor, and ABS conducted the classification review. Patrick Ryan, ABS Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, said nuclear has the potential to fundamentally alter commercial shipping in vessel design, operating range and energy economics. KRISO President Keyyong Hong said SMR powered ships are a next generation technology that will determine the future competitiveness of the shipping industry.
The approval builds on several years of ABS work on nuclear propulsion for merchant ships. A 2023 study by ABS and Herbert Engineering found that a 14,000 TEU containership fitted with two 30 MW fast reactors could run its entire 25 year service life without refueling while eliminating carbon emissions and freeing space by removing conventional fuel tanks. Earlier in 2026, HD Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering received a separate AIP for its own 15,000 TEU nuclear powered containership concept, and in March ABS, HD KSOE and HD Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries launched a joint project on a 16,000 TEU nuclear electric propulsion system.
For containership owners facing tightening emissions regulation and uneven supply of alternative fuels, reactor based propulsion offers a route to zero carbon operation without building out ammonia, methanol or hydrogen bunkering networks. The KRISO KAERI concept is a design stage milestone rather than an order, but it moves molten salt reactors closer to a class framework that yards and owners could eventually build against. ABS has also backed nuclear powered LNG carrier concepts and floating small modular reactor power platforms, signaling a broader push to establish safety rules before the first commercial newbuilds arrive.