LNG spot charter rates to hold strong this winter: MISC

Malaysian state-controlled shipping firm MISC expects tight availability of LNG carriers to support charter rates in the coming months, the firm said today.

The production ramp-up at US liquefaction facilities, which has increased tonnage demand in recent months, is expected to continue to drive spot charter rates for LNG carriers, MISC said. The "surge" in spot rates in recent weeks, with spot charter rates for tri-fuel diesel-electric (TFDE) carriers reaching as high as $145,000/d in the Atlantic basin and $135,000/d in the Asia-Pacific basin on 24 October, has raised expectations of a "robust" winter market, the firm added.

MISC's revenue from its LNG business segment rose on the year as a result of a higher number of operating vessels following lower dry dockings and the acquisition of two LNG carriers, MISC said.

MISC owns five Seri C class moss-type vessels, all of which are under long-term charter with its parent company Petronas. The firm took delivery of the fifth, the 150,200m³ Seri Cemara, in April. MISC has a total of 29 LNG carriers, the majority of which primarily operate in the Pacific basin, and another two floating storage units (FSUs) located at the 3.8mn t/yr Malacca terminal in west Malaysia.

MISC hopes to end the 2019 financial year "on a high note" with "a few more projects secured", the group's president and chief executive Yee Yang Chien said. The firm ordered two new LNG carriers in October, which are scheduled for delivery by the end of the first quarter of 2023 and are to be operated under a 15-year charter agreement with an ExxonMobil unit.

By Livia Gallarati