LNG

The Royal Navy warship “HMS Duncan” has deployed from Portsmouth to the Red Sea as part of the mission to keep open international shipping routes amid renewed attacks on vessels by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels of Yemen, ending hopes that shipping in the region could possibily return to near normal by the end of 2024.

The attacks have forced LNG carriers, oil tankers, containerships and other vessels to continue to be re-routed to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa amid renewed concerns that the Israel-Hamas war would further destabilise the Middle East now that Iran’s proxy, the Houthis, are back in action.

Shipping data shows that there has almost been a complete halt on LNG carriers entering the Red Sea area during the first five months of 2024.

In April 2024 a total of just 159 ships of all types used the Suez Canal, marking a sharp decline of 85 percent in the traffic from more normal times.

Re-routed

A total of 2,922 vessels used the Cape of Good Hope route in March, and the number was little changed in April at 2,873.

Maritime traffic at the Cape of Good Hope increased by 125 percent in the last six months, reflecting the diversions from both the Suez Canal and Bab-el-Mandeb Strait off Yemen.

The number of containerships and LNG carriers using the Cape was up by 260 percent and 180 percent respectively in April, according to shipping data.

All countries in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Turkey, have found themselves at the end of a dead-end for all trade from Asia, as ships no longer reach them through the Suez Canal and instead have to go round South Africa and enter the Med by the Strait of Gibraltar, adding to costs.

Meanwhile, the United States Navy and the Royal Navy have led the most strikes against Houthi targets in retaliation for their attacks on vessels.

The Houthis have launched repeated drone and missile strikes in the Red Sea region since November 2023, later expanding their attacks to the Indian Ocean.

The group has said it will attack any ships sailing towards Israeli ports, even in the Mediterranean Sea, though there have as yet been no attacks on vessels in the East Med area.

Shipping protection

The UK government said that the Type 45 destroyer just deployed will relieve its sister ship “HMS Diamond”, which has been protecting shipping lanes in the Red Sea from Houthi attacks since before Christmas.

The Royal Navy said that “HMS Duncan” was a like-for-like replacement as it is armed with the same Sea Viper missile system and equipped with the same radar systems, which are able to accurately detect faraway threats.

During her deployment, “HMS Diamond” has shot down nine drones and one missile, launched by Houthis from the coast of Yemen at cargo ships.

“The 200 men and women of ‘HMS Duncan’ have worked to ensure that their ship is ready to deploy, successfully completing trials and training last week in preparation for the deployment,” said a Ministry of Defence statement.

“This will see the ship work to ensure freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for merchant vessels,” the statement added.

“HMS Duncan” spent five months leading NATO’s premier task group in the Mediterranean Sea last year, until handing over flagship duties to the Italian Navy in December.

The ship is now ready for more operations, with over 60 new members joining the ship’s company. 

The American Bureau of Shipping, the US maritime classification society, has inaugurated an ABS Global LNG Academy in the Qatari capital Doha and dedicated to training and educating mariners in modern LNG vessel operations.

Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French designer of maritime liquefied natural gas storage and fuel tanks, said it received an order from its partner, China's Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, for the tank design of the first four LNG carriers for the QatarEnergy expansion project on behalf of the Japanese shipowner, Mitsui Osk Lines.

The Hudong-Zhonghua shipyard in Shanghai is a subsidiary of state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corp.

MOL, which has an operating fleet of almost 100 LNG carriers, had ordered the ships in April 2022 as it also increases its interests in the Chinese LNG shipping market.

GTT will design the tanks of these four new LNG carriers with a total of LNG tank capacity of 174,000 cubic metres per ship and the vessels will be fitted with the latest membrane containment system developed by GTT.

The deliveries of the four vessels  to serve the Qatar expansion project is scheduled for the third quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2025.

MOL announced in April 2022 it had signed a long-term charter contract for four newbuild LNG carriers with QatarEnergy.

Track record

“MOL's solid track record in building LNG carriers in China in addition to its performance in the LNG carrier business and safety in navigation and cargo handling earned high regard from QatarEnergy, leading to the successful conclusion of the contract.” MOL said at the time.

QatarEnergy has been developing the North Field Expansion Project to boost its LNG ouput.

The North Field expansion will increase Qatar's LNG production capacity from 77 million tonnes per annum to 126 MTPA with the carrier fleet programme alongside, which could amount to 80 vessels, including the replacement of older ships in the current fleet.

The scope of the first phase of the expansion at the Ras Laffan production complex involves an additional four Trains, each with 8.0 MTPA of output.

Qatar has the southern portion of the North Field in Gulf waters that will provide the huge feed-gas resources and the other part of the field is under the jurisdiction of neighbouring Iran. 

Qatari liquefied natural gas fleet owner and operator, Nakilat, has taken delivery of a newbuild carrier called “Global Sea Spirit”, its 22nd conventional-sized vessel and taking Qatar’s overall LNG fleet size to 74 ships.

The 174,000 cubic metres capacity “Global Sea Spirit” will be commercially and technically managed by Nakilat affiliate Nakilat Shipping Qatar Ltd (NSQL).

The latest LNG carrier was built by South Korean shipyard Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) and is the third of four LNG newbuild carriers to be delivered to Global Shipping Co. Ltd., a joint venture owned 60 percent by Nakilat and 40 percent by Greek company Maran Ventures Inc.

The first two LNG carriers newbuilds of the series have high-pressure M-Type Electronically Controlled-Gas Injection (ME-GI) engines.

They were delivered in May 2020 and January 2021 respectively and are currently in service.

The “Global Sea Spirit” is the first Nakilat vessel with X-DF propulsion, a slow-speed diesel engine with a direct drive to the propellers, enabling a substantial reduction in the vessel’s fuel consumption.

The fourth in the current DSME series will also have X-DF engines and delivery is scheduled for early 2022.

Advantages

“Like the ME-GI system, vessels running with X-DF engines propulsion are proven to be more fuel efficient, reduce greenhouse emissions and are more environmentally friendly due to their lower carbon emissions,” said Nakilat.

The “Global Sea Spirit” is chartered to Cheniere Marketing, a unit of Houston, Texas-based Cheniere Energy, owner of the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana and the Corpus Christi facility in Texas.

The newbuild is the optimum size preferred for sending US Gulf Coast cargoes via the Panama Canal to North Asia.

The delivery of all four newbuild LNG carriers by 2022 will bring Nakilat’s fleet to 74 vessels, which is just under 12 percent of the current global LNG fleet based on carrying capacity.

Of these, there are 24 LNG carriers, four liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier and one floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) vessel being managed in-house by NSQL.