Chinese shipbuilder Hudong-Zhonghua has started building the first of two 174,000-cbm LNG carriers for Cosco Shipping Energy Transportation and Sinochem.
Hudong-Zhonghua held a steel-cutting ceremony for the vessel with a working name H1892A on August 8, it said in a statement.
Officials from Cosco Shipping, Sinochem, ABS, CCS, and others attended the ceremony, it said.
This is the first of two 174,000-cbm LNG carriers Hudong-Zhonghua will build for the Sinochem project.
It will have an overall length of 295 meters, a width of 45 meters, and a sailing speed of 19.5 knots, the shipbuilder said.
Cosco’s shipping arm announced in May last year it signed shipbuilding deals for two LNG carriers worth about $430 million with compatriot Hudong-Zhonghua.
LNG Hong Kong, a unit of Cosco Shipping, entered the deals with CSSC’s Hudong-Zhonghua and China Shipbuilding Trading.
In addition, Singapore-based shipping unit of China’s Sinochem will charter these vessels under a long-term deal.
Hudong-Zhonghua will deliver these vessels on or before October 31, 2025 and March 31, 2026, respectively.
