Singapore’s Sembcorp Marine (Sembmarine) has spent $38m to up its stake in Norway’s Gravifloat AS, as part of a move into offshore gas processing units.

Sembmarine said it has acquired an additional 44% equity stake in Gravifloat, bringing its stake to 56%. The agreement also allows Sembmarine to eventually increase its stake by a further 44% to 100% through an equity purchase at the same price.

Gravifloat designs and holds patent for re-deployable modularised LNG and LPG solutions. From initial design, through construction and delivery, to installation and commissioning, Gravifloat offers customer across the LNG value chain an alternative to existing onshore and floating LNG facilities.

Wong Weng Sun, ceo of Sembmarine, said the company’s increased stake in Gravifloat “reflects out strategy to broaden and deepen the group’s range of proprietary designs and solutions to develop new state-of-the-art facilities for the fast evolving LNG and LPG industries.”

Gravifloat terminals claimed to offer more cost-competitive solution compared with FSRUs, FLNG and land terminals, and can be designed for both liquefaction and receiving terminal services.

Sembmarine had announced its initial 12% acquisition of Gravifloat in June 2014.