LNG

French liquefied natural gas storage technology firm and smart-shipping services supplier, Gaztranzport and Technigaz (GTT), has signed two technical services agreements for ships owned by Jovo Group of China.

South Korean shipbuilders, the global leaders in the construction of liquefied natural gas carriers, ranked second in 2023 in terms of new global orders for all types of vessels for a third straight year, though increased their share of the LNG newbuilds market.

Dec 8 (LNGJ) - French LNG maritime storage tank designer GTT has signed a “strategic cooperation agreement” with China State Shipbuilding Corp. (CSSC), the leading Chinese shipbuilding group.

   The accord was signed at the Marintec China international trade fair in Shanghai. “The agreement provides for cooperation between GTT and 12 subsidiaries of the CSSC conglomerate, notably in ship design and construction, cryogenic containment technologies for LNG shipping, LNG as fuel and smart shipping1 solutions,” said GTT. Among the CSSC subsidiaries are Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, the Jiangnan Shipyard, Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co. and Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding.

Sept 27 (LNGJ) - GTT, the French designer of maritime and onshore LNG storage tanks, continues to build its Chinese portfolio of orders. The Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai has ordered tank designs for two LNG carriers ordered by shipping company Shandong Marine Energy (Singapore) Ltd.

   “GTT will design the tanks of these two vessels, which will each offer a capacity of 175,000 cubic metres. The tanks will be fitted with the Mark III Flex membrane containment system developed by GTT,” the Paris-based company said. The delivery of the vessels is scheduled between the first and second quarters of 2027.

CMA CGM, the French container shipping line based in the Mediterranean port of Marseille and the third-largest in the world and with a growing fleet of LNG-powered vessels, has a new service to the LNG fuel location of Ennore port on the East Coast of India.

The containerships will expand port coverage with a direct call to Ennore, near Chennai in India, on the Westbound leg of the service connecting North Europe and the Mediterranean with Oceania as from June 2023.

“This new call will offer our customers a fast export connection from the main commercial area in South East India to Europe together with a direct import connection from Australia and Singapore,” said CMA CGM.

“Ennore is also a natural gateway from/to the Inland Container Depot of Bangalore covered with efficient rail connectivity,” added the French company.

The other LNG fuel ports in CMA CGM’s so-called NEMO service include Fos Sur Mer near Marseille, La Spezia in Italy, Rotterdam in the Netherlands, Malta and Singapore.

French LNG storage tanks designer GTT is supplying the tanks for six more LNG-powered containerships ordered from South Korea by CMA CGM.

The six containerships are being constructed at the Korean shipyard of Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries.

The vessels, each capable of carrying 8,000 containers, will be equipped with an LNG fuel tank with a capacity of 6,000 cubic metres.

The deliveries of the vessels are scheduled from the fourth quarter of 2024 to the fourth quarter of 2025.

CMA CGM is a pioneer of LNG-powered containerships and has about 12 more of the vessels being built in China.

The shipping line has said it is aiming to have a fleet of 44 LNG-fuelled containerships by 2024.

The 12 China-built vessels will be delivered between the last quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2024.

The construction contracts for those CMA CGM newbuilds were awarded to Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding and Jiangnan Shipyard Co.

Each of the Chinese yards is building six vessels able to carry between 13,000 and 15,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of containers.

The first ever LNG-powered containership was delivered to CMA CGM from the Hudong-Zhonghua yard and entered commercial operation in September 2020.

The 23,000 TEU “CMA CGM Jacques Saadé” was named after the late Lebanon-born founder of the shipping line and father of current Chairman Rodolphe Saadé.

Silverstream Technologies, the London-based leader in air lubrication technology, has signed a deal with China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES) to install its system on four Chinese LNG newbuilds being constructed at the Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Company (DSIC) yard in northeast China.

South Korean shipyards outperformed their Chinese counterparts in terms of orders for liquefied natural gas carriers during 2022, though finished second to China in overall shipyard orders.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (Adnoc), the owner of the Das Island LNG export plant in the United Arab Emirates, said its logistics arm had signed a contract with a Chinese shipyard for two newbuild LNG carriers.

Adnoc Logistics and Services (Adnoc L&S) said the two vessels with 175,000 cubic metres capacity would join the existing fleet in 2025.

“The purchase, part of the company’s broader growth and expansion strategy, further reinforces its position as the UAE’s leading shipping and maritime operator,” said Adnoc L&S.

“The new LNG vessels will be crucial enablers of Adnoc’s 2030 growth strategy, supporting its existing LNG business as well as its ambitions to grow its LNG production capacity,” the company explained.

The two carriers will be built at the Jiangnan Shipyard, located northeast of Shanghai on Changxing Island at the mouth of the Yangtze River.

Adnoc L&S has the largest and most diversified fleet of vessels within the Middle East and its trading fleet transports crude oil, refined products, dry bulk, containerised cargo, liquefied petroleum gas and LNG to global markets through its owned and chartered vessels.

Growth strategy

“The expansion and modernisation of our LNG fleet will be a key enabler of Adnoc L&S’ growth strategy. This acquisition helps future-proof our fleet with more sustainable, modern vessels capable of serving our customers for the next 25 years and deepens our partnership with Jiangnan Shipyard,” explained Captain Abdulkareem Al Masabi, Chief Executive of Adnoc L&S.

Adnoc L&S currently has eight LNG carriers among its fleet of over 40 vessels.

The newbuild LNG vessels are significantly larger than the current Adnoc L&S fleet of LNG ship which each have a capacity of 137,000 cubic metres.

Lin Ou, Chairman of Jiangnan Shipyard, said the yard was proud to continue its relationship with Adnoc L&S.

“This order for large LNG carriers is another milestone in the strategic portfolio of Jiangnan shipyard. We are committed to delivering these vessels on time, with good quality and ensuring the highest possible customer satisfaction,” stated Lin.

The Das Island LNG plant produces about 6 million tonnes per annum of LNG and came on stream in 1977 as the first liquefaction and production facility in the Arabian Gulf.

The plant is 70 percent owned by Adnoc and the other shareholders are Japan’s Mitsui & Co with 15 percent, UK major BP with 10 percent and TotalEnergies with 5 percent.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French designer of maritime liquefied natural gas storage and fuel tanks, has received another order from the Chinese Jiangnan shipyard as its busines in China gathers pace.

GTT said the latest order was for the cargo containment and cargo handling systems design fortwo large capacity LNG carriers.

As part of this order, GTT said it would provide the design and associated engineering services for the vessel’s tanks, which will each offer a capacity of 175,000 cubic metres.

The tanks will be fitted with the GTT Mark III Flex membrane containment system, a technology developed by GTT.

GTT added that the two vessels were scheduled for delivery in the first and second quarters of 2025.

“We are very pleased to accompany Jiangnan in a new phase of our collaboration, as these vessels are the first large LNG carriers to be built by Jiangnan shipyard,” said Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and Chief Executive of GTT.

“We will do whatever it takes to make this cooperation a great success,” added the CEO.

LNG growth

The Jiangnan shipbuilding business is one of China's larger shipyard facilities and is located northeast of Shanghai on Changxing Island at the mouth of the Yangtze River.

In mid-March 2022, GTT received an order from the Jiangnan shipyard for tank designs for four very large LNG-powered containerships on order for the leading Asian shipping company, Pacific International Lines.

Each vessel will be able to carry 14,000 20-feet equivalent units (TUE) containers and are scheduled to be delivered from the Chinese yard progressively from the second-half of 2024 through to the first half of 2025.

The LNG fuel tank of each vessel will offer a capacity of 13,800 cubic metres and will be fitted with the Mark III membrane containment system.

The tanks will also include unique features to facilitate a potential conversion of these vessels to ammonia fuel in the future.

In addition to the engineering services and on-site technical assistance, GTT explained that t would assist PIL through every step of their first LNG-fuelled project.

GTT said this would include commissioning of the LNG tanks, first LNG bunkering operations, as well as further specific LNG operations and maintenance of the vessels.

French liquefied natural gas storage technology firm Gaztranzport and Technigaz (GTT) reported a more than 20 percent drop in revenues in 2021 and net income was down over 32 percent as contracts for 27 newbuilds and a substantial order book failed to boost the bottom line because of timings.