LNG

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French maritime LNG storage technology company, has received an order from its partner, the South Korean shipyard Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), for the storage tank design for a floating unit ordered by Canada’s Cedar LNG project in British Columbia.

French LNG storage technology company GTT Group said its smart shipping unit Ascenz Marorka had been selected to provide advanced weather routing solutions for Monaco-based Greek company Latsco Shipping with a fleet of 36 vessels.

Latsco’s fleet mainly comprises chemical and liquefied petroleum gas vessels.

The accord will equip eight Latsco vessels with the Ascenz Marorka monitoring after a comprehensive market analysis and an extensive one-year testing phase on two of Latsco’s ships.

Optimal routes

Ascenz Marorka explained that the weather routing solution defines optimal shipping routes by integrating multiple operational, economic and environmental variables, while taking into account a wide range of operational and regulatory constraints.

This solution is compatible with various vessel types and propulsion systems, regardless of the fuel source chosen.

Latsco already uses the Ascenz Marorka Sloshield and Smart Shipping solutions to monitor in real time sloshing activity inside LNG cargo tanks by fixed motion sensors as well as boil-off performance of the containment system during operations.

Ascenz Marorka’s platform allows technical operators to monitor the performance of various systems such as the cargo or reliquefaction plants.

It also provides guidance to avoid roll-over when loading LNG of different densities

“We are honoured by the trust that Latsco places in us to support them in their journey towards digitalisation,” said Anouar Kiassi, Managing Director of Ascenz Marorka.

“We are delighted to work hand in hand with a ship-owner who values technology and innovation to achieve major decarbonisation goals,” he added.

Assessment

George Mavrogenis, Marine Manager of Latsco, said the Ascenz Marorka platform's features were thoroughly assessed for deliverables and ease of application.

“We evaluated its operational and safety navigation aspects, confirming it integrates seamlessly into daily practices, ensuring both efficiency and safety in our maritime operations” he stated.

Iasonas Zacharioudakis, Operational Technology and Energy Manager of Latsco, said he was impressed with the structured and thorough evaluation process, developed with Ascenz Marorka, to test new technologies.

“This process aimed to assess accurately the capabilities of this promising technology, considering the significant challenges in modelling ship navigation,” Zacharioudakis explained.

“Our goal is to enhance sustainability, improve environmental operations and optimise our environmental footprint,” he added.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company, has received design approval from two European classification societies for the latest containment system.

French liquefied natural gas storage technology firm Gaztranzport and Technigaz (GTT) said it received an order from the Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (SOE) group for the tank design for two LNG carriers and a Very Large Ethane Carrier.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French liquefied natural gas storage technology company, has received an order from China for five very large LNG-powered containerships to be constructed in South Korea.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company, has received an order from a Chinese shipyard to design the cryogenic fuel tanks of 10 ultra-large containerships to be powered by LNG as part of the move to cleaner maritime fuel.

The American Bureau of Shipping, the US maritime classification society, has approved an upgraded and larger liquified natural gas containment system developed by Norwegian firm LNT Marine along with the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design and Research Institute.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company, and South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries have received an approval from UK maritime classification society Lloyd’s Register for a new design of GTT’s three-tank concept.

The new design is for a new LNG carrier featuring GTT’s three-tank Mark III Flex membrane containment system, which will also allow for the reduction in the length of vessels.

This approval in principle is the result of a Joint Development Project initiated in 2022 and aimed at designing a new generation of LNG vessels.

Analysts note that about 30 years ago, GTT upgraded LNG carriers from five storage tanks to four tanks and the company now hopes to bring the market forward with a three-tank LNG carrier.

GTT explained that the three-tank LNG carrier concept permits an increase in LNG cargo capacity and improves maintenance efficiencies through the suppression of one cofferdam, one pump tower and all associated cryogenic equipment.

The Paris-based company added that the design also improved the ratio between the volume of LNG transported and the surface area of the cryogenic liner.

GTT explained that this would make it possible to achieve a boil-off rate as low as 0.080 percent of tank volume per day with the Mark III Flex technology compared with 0.085 percent of the volume per day with the LNG ships currently in operation (of 174,000 cubic metres capacity).

Loading

“In addition, this three-tank LNGC design provides an almost equivalent loading time as a standard four-tank LNGC configuration, thanks to an adapted pump tower,” said the company.

“In addition to these benefits, the removal of a cofferdam, pump tower and its associated equipment reduces the weight of the ship,” it added.

Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and Chief Executive of GTT, said he was proud to be granted this approval from Lloyd’s Register alongside its long-standing ship-building partner SHI.

“We are convinced that this development will benefit all players in the maritime sector by improving the performance of LNG carriers,” stated Berterottière.

Youngkyu Ahn, Vice President of the Shipbuilding Engineering Division of SHI, said the design was expected to increase cargo capacity, minimize operating costs, optimize maintenance efficiency and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.

“This achievement is a remarkable step in the pursuit of even more innovative vessel designs, and it is with conviction that we pledge to continue to explore and develop innovative designs in the future,” he stated.

Lloyd’s Register said it was focused on innovating to improve efficiency and safety and had reached “another important stage” in its collaboration with SHI and GTT.

“We are pleased to award this AiP, which marks an important step forward for LNG owners, who will now have the opportunity to reduce the length of their vessels and maximise cargo-carrying potential with this optimised design,” declared Young-Doo Kim, a senior executive of Lloyd’s Register in North-East Asia.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company for shipping and onshore, said the Supreme Court of Korea rejected GTT's appeal on licence and technical assistance deals with South Korean shipyards.

The Paris-based company had appealed against the decision of the Seoul High Court confirming the company's obligation to separate, in whole or in part, the “Technology License and the Technical Assistance” agreements if requested by the South Korean shipyards it has dealings with.

GTT had filed its appeal against the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) decision in December 2022.

“GTT acknowledges this very surprising decision, which comes only three months after the decision of the same Supreme Court of Korea to suspend the effects of the decision of the Seoul High Court,” said GTT.

The French company said it considered that its provision of technical assistance and engineering services “were essential to ensure the safety and performance” of its solutions and that its “unique expertise” was crucial to the safety of LNG maritime transport.

Defending interests

“Convinced of the sound basis of its contractual provisions, GTT is still committed to defending its interests and those of the entire LNG industry, and is considering the most appropriate actions to be taken in order to maintain its rights,” stated the Paris-based company.

“The company does not anticipate any significant financial impact in the short or medium term,” it added.

The KFTC in December 2022 had ordered GTT to allow the Korean shipyards, upon their request, to perform all or part of the technical assistance services currently included in the technology licenses and to pay €9.5 million ($10.40M) as an administrative fine.

The loss of the Korea appeal comes as GTT continues to expand its relationships with Chinese companies and shipyards where it has similar accords and is building the LNG tanks storage technology business.

On the occasion of the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron’s to Beijing on April 6, 2023, PipeChina Engineering Technology Innovation Co. signed a cooperation agreement for the evaluation and further promotion of GTT’s membrane containment tank technology for LNG projects in China.

PipeChina Group is currently operating seven LNG receiving terminals in China and three new LNG import projects are under construction.

As the largest operator of LNG infrastructure in China, PipeChina said it was keen to expand its cooperation with GTT.

Adnan Ezzarhouni, General Manager of GTT China, explained that GTT had already delivered onshore tanks to the Chinese.

These were for a peak-shaving project at Hejian in Hebei province, operated by Huagang Gas, as well as Phase I of the giant Beijing Gas Tianjin-Nangang onshore LNG terminal and the company was seeking additional contracts.

GTT has major collaborations with major Chinese shipyards such as Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corp., and Jiangnan Shipbuilding located northeast of Shanghai on Changxing Island at the mouth of the Yangtze River.

Oct 7 (LNGJ) - French LNG storage technology firm GTT said it was awarded a contract by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to support research work for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) under the auspices of the US Department of Energy’s Fermi National Laboratory (Fermilab) after assuming a similar role in 2018 with the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva.

   DUNE is a major international experiment that aims to increase the understanding of neutrinos. These are subatomic particles with a mass close to zero. The project takes advantage of the neutrinos produced by the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF) at Fermilab, which are subsequently screened in the particle detectors filled with liquid argon. “Liquid argon used in this experimental context has to be maintained at an extremely stable temperature of minus-186°C, in an environment that secures, through perfect tightness, the purity of materials and a high level of thermal isolation,” explained GTT.