According to the BBC, the prelude, a British Dutch Shell floating ship longer than the height of the Empire State Building in New York, was launched for the first time.
The hull of the floating ship, called prelude, is being tested at a shipyard in Juji, South Korea, the report said. Once completed, the "prelude" floating vessel will become the largest floating facility in the world, weighing more than 600000 tons.
Shell said that from 2017, the floating ship Prelude will be used to help produce natural gas. It will last 25 years off the coast of northwest Australia. The region has an annual tornado season from November to April, but the "prelude" floating boat will be able to cope with this climate condition. Shell hopes the floating facility will produce enough gas for a city as big as Hong Kong.
Although it looks like a ship, the prelude can't be called a ship in the strict sense, because it needs to be towed to where it should be, rather than driven by its own power.
Shell did not say how much the floating ship will cost, but industry analysts told Reuters the overall cost is estimated to be between $10.8 billion and $12.6 billion.
Although the prelude has broken any previous record for floating vessels, shell says it has begun to design and build a larger floating facility.