Taiwan’s Yang Ming Marine Transport said it has decided to order five LNG-powered containerships, as part of its fleet renewal program.
According to a statement issued by Yang Ming on Friday, the company’s board of directors approved the five 15,000-teu LNG-dual fuel vessels at a meeting on April 15.
The shipping firm did not reveal the name of the potential yard that would build these vessels or the planned investment.
Shipbuilding sources told LNG Prime that Yang Ming would likely order these vessels in South Korea.
Earlier this year, South Korea’s Hyundai Samho received an order for six similar LNG-powered containerships with a price tag of about $1.08 billion.
This means that Yang Ming could pay at least $180 million or more per vessel as prices for newbuilds continue to rise.
First LNG-powered containerships in Taiwan
With this move, Yang Ming said it would become the first shipping company in Taiwan that owns LNG-powered containerships.
The company’s shipbuilding plan is set to strengthen its mid- to long-term operational competitiveness and accelerate its fleet renewal plan.
“By using clean energy, Yang Ming has taken another step to address climate change and move on to low-carbon transitions,” it said.
Yang Ming chose LNG as fuel in order to comply with IMO’s stricter emissions rules and the Fit for 55 package, part of the European Commission’s green deal.
By choosing LNG, the company expects to reduce GHG emissions by at least 20 percent, as compared to using traditional fuel, it said.
As of March 2022, Yang Ming operates a fleet of 92 vessels with a capacity of 668,000 TEUs, its website shows.
The firm is also part of The Alliance, a shipping consortium that includes Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, and HMM.
