Meanwhile, there was an important business meeting in Beijing between QatarEnergy and COSCO Shipping Group
On Monday, China State Shipbuilding Corp, the world's largest shipbuilder, received what it calls the world's largest single order of ships from energy industry giant QatarEnergy.
The State-owned conglomerate signed a contract for 18 super-heavy, liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers with QatarEnergy at a signing ceremony in Beijing, which was participated by Qatar's Minister of State for Energy Affairs and president and CEO of the Qatari company Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi and Wen Gang, chairman of CSSC.
Photo QatarEnergy
QatarEnergy signed long-term time charter party (TCP) agreements with three ship owners for the operation of nine new, ultra-modern LNG vessels as part of the QC-Max part of its historic LNG fleet expansion program.
The long-term TCP agreements cater for the operation of the vessels by affiliates of China Merchants Group, Shandong Marine Group, and China LNG Shipping (Holdings) Limited. All nine vessels will have a capacity of 271,000 cubic meters each.
His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of QatarEnergy signed three separate sets of agreements agreements with:
- Mr. Wang Yongxin, President of CMES, for the operation of four vessels,
- Mr. Li Maozhong, Chairman of Shandong Marine Energy for the operation of three vessels, and
- Mr. Cong Jian, General Manager of CLNG, for the operation of two vessels.
The agreements were signed today in a special ceremony held in Beijing, and attended by senior executives from QatarEnergy, QatarEnergy LNG, and the three shipowner companies. The signing ceremony was attended by Mr. Mohamed Abdullah Al-Dehaimi, Qatar’s Ambassador in the People’s Republic of China.
Formerly known as Qatar Petroleum, QatarEnergy is a State-owned company that operates all oil and gas activities in the Arab country. It is the world's largest provider of LNG.
According to a news release from CSSC, the deal has become the biggest single procurement of any ships in the history of the world's shipbuilding sector, though the company refused to disclose the order's value in consideration of commercial confidentiality.
The contract is a testimony to CSSC's rising status in the global market of LNG carriers and also symbolizes China's rapid advances in the research, development and building of ultra-large LNG tankers, CSSC noted.
The 18 ultra-large LNG carriers are in the Q-Max class. They have been designed by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a CSSC subsidiary in Shanghai.
After the signing of the contract, the Shanghai shipyard will start building those vessels.
Each of the QatarEnergy carriers will be 344 meters long, 53.6 meters wide and will have a draft of 12 meters. It will be able to contain 271,000 cubic meters of LNG, about 57 percent more than regular LNG carriers with maximum capacity of 174,000 cubic meters.
One of such carriers can transport 155 million cubic meters of natural gas at a time, which can meet the gas consumption demand of 4.7 million households in Shanghai for one month.
These specifications make it the largest LNG carrier developed in the world so far.
Currently, the world's largest LNG carriers are Qatar's Q-Max vessels with carrying capacities ranging from 263,000 to 266,000 cubic meters of LNG.
Commenting on this occasion, H.E. Minister Al-Kaabi said: “These nine vessels are part of QatarEnergy’s historic program to support our expanded LNG production capacity from the North Field, which will reach 142 million tons per annum by 2030, and which will also help meet our long-term fleet replacement requirements.”
H.E. Minister Al-Kaabi added: “Our partnerships with China’s shipbuilding industry and the esteemed shipowners, will ensure the long-term operation, deployment, and management of these vessels in a manner that maximizes their potential over decades to come. As we build this partnership, I am reminded of the trust and collaboration that characterizes our relationship, which I believe will continue to grow and flourish as we place more building blocks along the way.”
H.E. Al-Kaabi expressed confidence in the shipowners’ unique capabilities, which will ensure the operation of these vessels to the highest and most advanced safety, technical and environmental standards.
The nine vessels are part of 18 QC-Max LNG carriers that will be built in Hudong-Zhonghua shipyards in China.
The meeting with COSCO Shipping Group
His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, met in Beijing today with Mr. Miao Jianmin, the Chairman of China Merchants Group, Mr. Jiang Guodong, the Chairman of Shandong Marine Group, and Mr. Zhang Yong, the Vice President of COSCO Shipping Group.
Photo QatarEnergy
The meeting with the leaderships of the three Chinese shipowners took place on the sidelines of the signing ceremony of long-term time charter party agreements for the operation of nine QC-Max LNG vessels as part QatarEnergy’s historic LNG fleet expansion program. The meeting was attended by Mr. Mohamed Abdullah Al-Dehaimi, Qatar’s Ambassador in China and senior executives from QatarEnergy, QatarEnergy LNG, and the three shipowner companies.
Comments