LNG orderbook worth $22bn

New data by Clarksons Research reveals that the global LNG orderbook consisted of 110 carriers by the start of June. Thirty-five of those were ordered this year alone. Japan leads the ownership pack, but Greece is on its heels.

News ID: 80154

Date: 04 August 2018 - 12:10

By the start of June, the 2018 orderbook stood at $6bn, according to Clarkson THE global orderbook for liquefied natural gas carriers grew to 110 vessels worth $22bn by mid-2018, with Greek owners and South Korean yards claiming the biggest shares of that orderbook, according to Clarksons Research.

The London-based broker reported that as of the beginning of June this year, the LNG carrier fleet totalled 531 vessels of 78.3m cu m, marking a 5.9% rise since January. With 35 vessels ordered since the beginning of the year, the 2018 orderbook was worth $6bn by the end of June. Meanwhile, 413 vessels in the global merchant fleet were equipped with LNG power as of the beginning of June and another 253 capable of running on LNG were on the orderbook. Business is booming for floating storage and regasification units, as 37% of incoming exporting projects are set to use FSRUS.

Clarksons also painted a positive picture for the future of floating liquefied natural gas projects. “Overall, the LNG sector seems to have moved into a more positive phase, although challenges remain,'' it said in the report. ``The pace of vessel deliveries has picked up this year, and the risk of project slippage remains. ``However, firm expansion in long-haul LNG trade is expected to help support further gains in the LNG carrier supply-demand balance in the short to medium-term.'' South Korean shipbuilders dominate the market, boasting a 71% claim in the orderbook in terms of capacity with DSME, Hyundai Heavy Industries and Samsung Heavy Industries grabbing all of that business. Japan followed with 21% of all orders leaving China with the other 9%.

Ownership on the fleet also remained heavily split between two dominant players; Japan and Greece. Japanese owners claimed 19% of the fleet with Greeks trailing behind at 15%. Qatar and Norway follow suit with a 9% share each, ahead of South Korea’s 7%. Greece had 26% of all orders by the start of June in terms of capacity, while Japan had 24%. Norway also has 11% of the order book, Canada another 9% and the UK 6%.