Chinese shipbuilder Hudong-Zhonghua has started building the second of six 174,000-cbm LNG carriers for Japan’s MOL and compatriot CNOOC.
Hudong-Zhonghua held a steel-cutting ceremony for the vessel with a working name H1881A on June 28, it said in a statement.
The shipbuilder started building the first LNG vessel in this batch of six in August last year.
MOL, in a partnership with COSCO Shipping’s unit CSLNG, ordered these six vessels from Hudong-Zhonghua in January 2022 for about $1.17 billion.
All of the ships will serve CNOOC’s gas and power unit under long-term charter deals.
Part of Hudong-Zhonghua’s fifth-generation Changxeng series, the 299 meters long vessels will feature WinGD’s X-DF dual-fuel engines and GTT’s NO96 Super+ containment system.
The Chinese shipbuilder will deliver the vessels from 2024 through 2026.