QatarEnergy held naming ceremonies to inaugurate four of the dozens of conventional-size LNG vessels it had ordered from South Korean builders. Image by RobertoDavid via iStock
QatarEnergy said Thursday it had held naming ceremonies to inaugurate four of the dozens of conventional-size liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels it had ordered from South Korean builders.
Three of the newly inaugurated ships, named "Lebrethah", "Nuaijah" and "Umm Swayyah", mark the first deliveries by Hanwha Ocean Co. Ltd. under QatarEnergy's LNG fleet expansion program, state-owned QatarEnergy said in a statement.
"This is a historic moment as these three LNG vessels prepare to set sail on their missions across the globe, providing a cleaner and more economic source of energy, and are equipped with state-of-the-art technologies to achieve optimal fuel efficiency and reduce emissions", Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, president and chief executive of QatarEnergy and energy minister of Qatar, told one of the two separate ceremonies in Geoje, according to the online statement.
The other ship, named "Id'asah", will also be the first delivery by Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. under the program, QatarEnergy said.
Both the Hanwha Ocean Shipyard and the Samsung Heavy Industries Shipyard are in the city of Geoje on the country's southern coast. South Korean government representatives attended the ceremonies, QatarEnergy said.
It gave no date when the ships would be deployed.
Two months ago QatarEnergy inaugurated two of the 12 conventional-size LNG tankers it ordered from China State Shipbuilding Corp. CSSC. The two, one named after former Exxon Mobil Corp. chief executive Rex Tillerson, will be deployed by QatarEnergy Trading under long-term charters, QatarEnergy said in a press release September 10.
On September 9 it announced it had contracted the Chinese state-owned shipbuilder for six more LNG ships, bringing the number of LNG vessels ordered by QatarEnergy under its fleet expansion program to 128.
The new orders consist of QC-Max tankers, each with a capacity of 271,000 cubic meters (9.6 million cubic feet). The new orders, which QatarEnergy said are the biggest LNG carriers and will incorporate sustainable innovation, are scheduled for delivery between 2028 and 2031.
The new orders increased the number of QC-Max ships in its fleet expansion program to 24, with all build contracts awarded to CSSC for a total contract value of about $8 billion. CSSC is building the carriers at the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard. Of the 18 earlier ordered, eight are set to be delivered between 2028 and 2029, the rest between 2030 and 2031, according to a QatarEnergy statement April 29.
On May 8 QatarEnergy signed a "long-term" charter agreement with Qatar Gas Transport Co. Ltd. (Nakilat) assigning Nakilat ownership and operatorship of nine of the QC Max-size ships. QatarEnergy earlier selected Nakilat for the ownership and operatorship of 25 conventional-size LNG ships, as announced February 10. QatarEnergy has not disclosed the duration of these agreements.