Doosan Goes eco-friendly

Doosan Infracore goes eco-friendly

Korea's largest maker of construction equipment will lead a government-funded project to develop environment-friendly excavators, the company said yesterday.

The project, funded by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, envisions Doosan Infracore Co. by 2014 developing 22-ton class excavators that reduce emission of carbon dioxide by 35 percent while saving 35 percent in fuel.

Costs saved per product are estimated at $12,000 (17 million won) a year.

"We plan to expand the application of energy-saving technologies to wheel loaders and forklifts," the Seoul-based company said in a statement.

The project has a total investment budget of 18 billion won, and boasts participation by seven other institutions in Korea and abroad.

Doosan Infracore's affiliate, Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., is also taking eco-friendly path.

The company said that it has won a deal valued at $72.4 million (100 billion won) to upgrade a power plant in the country with energy-efficient facilities.

A deal with Korea South East Power Co. calls on Doosan Heavy to design and install a fuel-saving boiler facility at the power station in Yeosu, 455 kilometers southwest of Seoul, by December 2011, the company said in a statement.

In 2006, Doosan Heavy signed a partnership deal with Foster Wheeler in the United States, a global leader in technology, to build circulating fluidized-bed boilers that reduce fuel costs while emitting less pollution.