LNG

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

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company for shipping and onshore, said it received its first order from a new partner, the Chinese shipyard China Merchants Heavy Industry in Jiangsu province, for the tank designs for four LNG carriers.

GTT will design the tanks of these four vessels, which will each offer a total cargo capacity of 180,000 cubic metres and would be fitted with the Mark III Flex membrane containment system.

The delivery of the vessels to an as yet unnamed European owner is scheduled between the first quarter of 2026 and the first quarter of 2027.

“We are glad to receive this first order from China Merchants Heavy Industry-Jiangsu for the design of the tanks of four new LNG carriers,” said Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and Chief Executive of GTT.

“With this fifth shipyard, China confirms its growing role in the construction of LNG carriers and opens up new opportunities in a context of strong demand,” stated Berterottière.

China newbuilds

Simple Hu, General Manager of China Merchants Industry Holdings, said the order for large-scale LNG carriers was the first for the Haimen shipyard in Jiangsu

“We are excited to turn our vision into reality, offering state-of-the-art vessels to the growing LNGC market,” he added.

“We highly appreciate the support provided by the GTT Group, whose experience was instrumental in the preparation and development of our solution,” he said.

GTT continues to expand its relationships with Chinese companies and shipyards with technology accords for maritime and onshore LNG tanks storage tanks.

PipeChina Engineering Technology Innovation Co. signed a cooperation agreement on April 6, 2023, for the evaluation and further promotion of GTT’s membrane containment technology for onshore 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.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company for ships and onshore, said it received two approvals from maritime classification societies for its new three-tank LNG tanker design.

The Approvals in Principle (AiP) came from Norwegian class society DNV and France’s Bureau Veritas.

DNV and BV have issued approvals in principle for the three-tank LNG carrier design for the Mark III and No. 96 technologies developed by GTT.

“This technological solution is aimed at increasing the profitability and overall performance of the vessel,” stated GTT.

GTT explained that the three-tank LNG carrier concept allowed a reduction in construction costs through the suppression of one cofferdam, one pump tower and all associated cryogenic equipment such as liquid and gas domes, valves and piping.

Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and Chief Executive of GTT, said that for almost 60 years, the GTT Group has been constantly improving its technologies to meet customer  requirements as well as those of the regulatory authorities.

Fewer tanks

“Thirty years ago, we upgraded LNG carriers from five to four tanks and we now hope to bring the market forward with a three-tank LNG carrier. We hope to see this concept become standard in future years,” declared Berterottière.

The Paris-based company said that the overall surface area of the containment system will also be reduced by about 2,000 cubic metres, generating lower costs for the materials and vessel construction.

GTT added that improved ratio between the volume of LNG transported and the surface area of the cryogenic liner would make it possible to reduce the daily boil-off rate.

As an example, GTT estimated that it would achieve a boil-off rate as low as 0.080 percent of tank volume per day with the Mark III Flex technology compared to 0.085 percent of the volume per day with the LNG carriers currently in operation.

The company said that this new design could also offer time-savings for shipyards and could help optimise their construction schedules.

Jean-Baptiste Boutillier, Vice President of Development, Innovation and Technical Strategy at GTT, said the company was honoured by the granting of these two approvals in principle for the three-tank LNG carrier.

“We are convinced that this evolution will benefit all stakeholders by improving the performance of the LNG carrier while reducing its carbon footprint,” added Boutillier.

French liquefied natural gas storage technology firm Gaztranzport and Technigaz (GTT) has named a new chief financial officer who once worked for France’s Casino Group mass-market retail supermarket chain.

GTT has appointed Virginie Aubagnac to the position of CFO after she joined GTT in April 2021 as Special Advisor to the Chairman.

Aubagnac takes the CFO helm from Marc Haestier, who leaves GTT to retire.

A graduate of HEC Paris, Aubagnac began her career in the Finance Department of Rallye SA, which owns a majority stake in the Casino Guichard-Perrachon supermarket group.

She then became project manager for the Deputy Managing Director of the same company.

Afterwards, she joined the Strategy and Planning Department of the Casino Group.

Then in 2008, she took part in the creation of GreenYellow, a company offering business-to-business solutions for the energy transition where she held the positions of Secretary General and CFO, then Managing Director in charge of finance from 2017 to 2020.

“This appointment strengthens the management team,” said Philippe Berterottière, Chairman and Chief Executive of GTT, listed on the Paris Euronext exchange.

“Virginie Aubagnac’s vision of GTT group’s transformation and development, her rich experience, as well as her entrepreneurial spirit and managerial qualities, will fully contribute to the implementation of GTT’s strategic orientations,” stated Berterottière.

“On behalf of the Executive Committee, I would like to warmly thank Marc Haestier for his contribution to GTT group over the past four years,” added the CEO.

GTT’s most recent order was for fuel tank designs for five LNG-fuelled container vessels from South Korean shipyard Samsung Heavy Industries.

Each of the newbuilds will be able to carry 15,000 containers each, on behalf of the Asian ship-owner Seaspan, and will be operated by the Israeli shipping company ZIM.

The fuel tank of each vessel will offer a capacity of 12,000 cubic metres and will be fitted with the Mark III membrane containment system.

Vessels deliveries are scheduled to occur between the third quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024. 

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French designer of liquefied natural gas maritime and onshore storage, has received approval for the No. 96 containment system application as an LNG fuel tank for Ultra-Large Container Vessels from the European classification society DNV GL as the number of LNG-powered ships increases.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French technology firm for designs of systems for the maritime transportation and storage of liquefied natural gas, has renewed and expanded a global Technical Services Agreement (TSA) with the Norwegian shipowner Knutsen OAS Shipping and its growing LNG fleet.