Chinese shipyards won record number of large LNG carrier orders in 2022

China’s Hudong-Zhonghua and three other compatriot yards won a record number of orders for liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers this year, boosted by international orders and the giant QatarEnergy shipbuilding program.

Based on data from Hudong-Zhonghua, DSIC, Jiangnan, Yangzijiang, and shipbuilding sources, LNG Prime estimates that these yards won in total 51 orders for large LNG carriers this year up to date.

Hudong-Zhonghua won the majority of these orders or 37, followed by DSIC and Jiangnan with six, each, and two orders at Yangzijiang.

Under the giant QatarEnergy program, Hudong-Zhonghua booked orders for seven LNG carriers with Japan’s MOL, and five LNG carriers with a consortium of Japan’s NYK, K Line, Malaysia’s MISC, and China LNG Shipping.

MOL also ordered three LNG carriers at Hudong-Zhonghua for charter to ENN and teamed up for six LNG carriers for CNOOC charter while NYK also ordered six LNG carriers that will serve CNOOC.

Other contracts include orders by CSSC Shipping and COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation.

Three new yards

Besides Hudong-Zhonghua, DSIC won its first large LNG carrier this year and it will in total build six LNG carriers for China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES), a unit of China Merchants Group.

This is the case with Jiangan as well who will build six LNG carriers for a unit of UAE’s Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (Adnoc).

The latest Chinese shipbuilder to join the large LNG carrier sector is Yangzijiang Shipbuilding who will construct two LNG carriers for Germany’s Hammonia Reederei.

China Merchants Heavy Industries in Jiangsu (CMHI Jiangsu) could also join these yards soon with an order from Denmark’s Celsius Tankers, according to shipbuilding sources.

All of these confirmed orders are worth more than $10 billion as prices for LNG carriers surged during the last year.

The latest large LNG carrier orders in China were reported with a price tag of about $235 million while those in South Korea were about $250 million.

All of the large LNG carriers ordered in China will feature GTT’s tech.

The French LNG containment giant previously said it received record 134 orders in the January-September period of this year, with most of them coming from South Korea but with a rising share from China.

The January-September orders almost doubled compared to the 68 orders for the entire 2021, GTT said.

More than 160 LNG carrier orders

There were more than 160 LNG carrier orders in South Korea and China up to date and the year could end above 170 carriers.

DSME reported record 38 LNG carrier orders this year while Samsung Heavy won 36 orders. KSOE and its units received 42 LNG carrier orders and one FSRU order by the end of November.

Including Chinese orders, this puts the total to some 167 LNG carrier orders, a record-breaking year for the LNG carrier newbuild sector.

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