French LNG containment giant GTT said it had received record 134 orders for liquefied natural gas carriers as well as contracts to equip 42 LNG-powered vessels during the January-September period of this year.
The January-September orders almost doubled compared the 68 orders for the entire 2021.
GTT booked 46 LNG carrier orders in the third quarter of this year and 88 orders in the first half.
Also, the new LNG carriers will be built by South Korean yards and Chinese yards with delivery dates spanning from the third quarter of 2024 and the second quarter of 2027.
During the period under review, GTT received orders to equip 44 LNG-powered vessels, confirming its progress in this segment after a record last year with 27 orders.
Order book and revenues
As of September 30, 2022, GTT’s order book excluding LNG as fuel stood at 269 units. This includes 250 LNG carriers, 2 ethane carriers, 2 FSUs, 3 GBSs, and 12 onshore storage tanks, the firm said.
With regard to LNG as fuel, the order book stood at 70 units as of September 30, 2022. These are all containerships.
Moreover, GTT said third-quarter revenues rose 4.1 percent year-on-year to 77.8 million euros ($78 million), while January-September revenues dropped 7.5 percent to 222 million euros ($223 million).
“As expected, nine-month 2022 revenues were down compared to the same period in 2021 due to an unfavorable base effect, which is gradually disappearing thanks to the strong order momentum,” GTT’s CEO Philippe Berterottière, said.
“With 134 LNG carrier orders, our core business during the first nine months of 2022 has broken all previous sales records, highlighting the continuation of particularly strong momentum. The surge in demand for LNG, particularly in Europe, is fueling further demand for LNG carriers, underpinned by investment in liquefaction plants and increased construction capacity at shipyards,” he said.
Shipbuilding delays
GTT previously said it expects consolidated revenues between 290 million and 320 million euros in 2022.
Given delays in shipbuilding schedules for certain vessels during the first nine months of 2022, the group confirmed its forecast that revenues and Ebitda would reach the lower half of the ranges announced in February, it said.
“In the longer term, the group should benefit from the current strong order momentum and expects to achieve significantly higher revenues and earnings from 2023 onwards versus 2022,” GTT said.