Energy giant Shell has agreed long-term charter contracts for six 174,000-cbm newbuild LNG carriers.
Shell Tankers signed the deals with Norway’s Knutsen, South Korea’s Pan Ocean, and investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Shell said in a statement on Wednesday.
South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hyundai Samho will build the new vessels and start delivering them from 2023.
The new deal follows a similar agreement for four 174,000-cbm carriers Shell has signed with the same owners in December last year.
Shell announced charters for eight ships of the same class in December 2019 and six in August 2020.
This puts the total to 24 new LNG carriers.
Moreover, the new vessels will feature dual-fuel X-DF engines, boil-off management plants, air lubrication systems and shaft generators for auxiliary power, along with optimised hull and design speed.
“These ships will be some 35% more efficient than required by the energy efficiency design index (EEDI) and 20% more than required by the annual efficiency ratio (AER), delivering significant emission reductions for our time charter fleet,” said Grahaeme Henderson, global head of Shell shipping and maritime.