LNG

Capital Product Partners LP (CPLP), the growing liquefied natural gas and energy shipping assets owner, has taken delivery of the newbuild LNG carrier, “Asterix I” and chartered it to a UK-based company.

CPLP said that the vessel has started seven years of employment with Hartree Partners Power & Gas Company (UK) Limited, who maintain an option to extend by an additional two years.

Hartree Partners is a London-based energy supplier and is also involved in trading and marketing volumes to the National Grid.

The owner of “Astrix 1” is a Greek company listed on the Nasdaq global exchange as well as being a master limited partnership in the Marshall Islands.

The LNG vessels sail under the Capital Gas banner and the experienced CPLP executive leadership comprises Chief Executive Gerasimos (Jerry) Kalogiratos, Chief Financial Officer Nikolaos Kalapotharakos and Chief Commercial Officer Spyridon Leousis.

The “Asterix I” vessel is the seventh latest-generation of LNG carriers for CPLP and has 174,000 cubic metres capacity.

Fleet

CPLP currently owns 22 vessels, including the seven LNG carriers as well as 11 Neo-Panamax container vessels, three Panamax container vessels and one Capesize bulk carrier.

This excludes one 13,312 TEU container vessel that CPLP has agreed to acquire and is expected to be delivered in the second quarter of 2023

CPLP signed an agreement in June 2022 to acquire one 174,000 cubic metres capacity latest-generation X-DF LNG carrier and three 13,312 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) containerships with hybrid scrubber-fitted Tier III and Phase III as well as being dual fuel-ready.

CPLP in its most recent earnings posted on February 3, 2023, reported full year net profits of $21.1 million, an increase of 13 percent on the $18.6M of net earnings from 2021.

The company's annual revenues came to $79.9M versus $63.6M in the previous year.

The increase in revenue was primarily attributable to the contributions of the four LNG carriers acquired during the fourth quarter of 2021 and operating for the full period and an increase in the daily rate earned by the LNG vessels “Aristarchos” and “Asklipios” from September 2022.

June 16 (LNGJ) - Capital Gas Ship Management Corp. has taken delivery of a new LNG carrier, the “Aristarchos”, built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea. “With cargo capacity of 174,000 cubic metres, the vessel is highly efficient, propelled with XDF engines and equipped with the latest available technologies, including an air lubrication system and increased filling limits of more than 99 percent,” said Capital Gas.

   “It is the third of seven sister ships to be delivered between 2020-2023. The vessel has been chartered to Cheniere for a period up to six years,” said the Piraeus, Greece-based company. Capital Gas is a ship management service provide and currently manages a fleet of seven modern LNG carriers, four under construction and three trading.

Jan 5 (LNGJ) - Capital Gas Ship Management Corp., the Greek company based in the port of Piraeus, has taken delivery of the LNG carrier newbuild, the “Aristidis I”, from the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea. The “Arisidis I” has been chartered to BP Shipping of the UK for a period up to 12 years.

   “With cargo capacity of 174,000 cubic metres, the vessel is highly efficient, propelled with XDF engines and equipped with the latest available technologies, including an air lubrication system and increased filling limits (up to 93.5 percent),” said Capital Gas. “It is the second of seven sister ships to be delivered between 2020-2023,” the company added.

GasLog Ltd., the LNG fleet owner based in the Greek port of Piraeus with a total fleet of 35 vessels split with its US affiliate, has taken delivery of its latest carrier built in South Korea and chartered to UK utility Centrica plc.

The 180,000 cubic metres capacity vessel, named “GasLog Windsor”, was constructed at Samsung Heavy Industries.  It has X-DF propulsion, a combination of gas and diesel. and a Mark III Flex containment system from French technology firm GTT.

“Despite the industrial disruption in South Korea caused by the Covid-19 outbreak, the vessel was delivered on time and on budget,” said GasLog.

Centrica has US volumes from the US Gulf Coast and regasification capacity at the UK Isle of Grain terminal, located southeast of London. The UK utility also has cargoes booked from the Mozambique LNG project.

The company gave an operational update and said they remained focused on securing the health and safety of their employees, while also ensuring safe and reliable operations for their customers and the global natural gas supply chain.

As regards its fleet numbers, 19 carriers are owned by GasLog, 13 on the water and six on order, while one has been sold to a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co. of Japan and leased back to GasLog under a long-term charter.

The remaining 15 LNG carriers are owned by Nasdaq-listed GasLog Partners.

During the past two month or so, GasLog said its operational activity has been 100 percent.

GasLog and GasLog Partners have also accelerate opportunistically their dry-docking schedules during the slowdown of LNG trade in February and March.

“Four dry-dockings will have been completed by mid-April, all of which are expected to be on time and within budget, including the installation of ballast water treatment systems,” said GasLog.

The charter parties for all of the Group’s term-chartered vessels remain in effect with revenues as per the contract terms.

“During the first quarter of 2020, the Group’s tri-fuel diesel electric vessels operating in the spot and short-term market delivered time charter equivalent earnings of around $44,000 per day,” said GasLog.
“Presently, all of the Group’s vessels operating in the spot and short-term market that are not undergoing dry-dockings are on charters through to at least May,” it added.

Gaslog noted that there has been a marked increase in activity in the spot and short-term market in recent weeks, primarily driven by a resumption in industrial activity in China.

“Against a backdrop of unprecedented global uncertainty, I am very proud of the dedication of all our employees, whose health and safety remains our first priority,” said Paul Wogan, Chief Executive.

“I especially thank our seafarers for their commitment and professionalism while apart from their families and friends,” stated Wogan.

The “GasLog Windsor” is immediately delivered into an attractive seven-year charter to Centrica.

“This vessel is the first of seven newbuildings due to be delivered by the third quarter of 2021,” said GasLog.

“On a fully delivered basis, 60 percent of GasLog’s directly owned fleet will be modern X-DF vessels on multi-year term charters,” it added.