Petronas signs charters for three new LNG carriers

Malaysian state-owned Petronas has signed charter agreements for three new 174,000m³ LNG carriers with South Korean shipowner Hyundai LNG Shipping (HLS), for use with the planned 14mn t/yr LNG Canada project.

Petronas is scheduled to receive the carriers from the second quarter of 2024. They have already been ordered by HLS from South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries. HLS has eight carriers on the water.

Petronas reached a final investment decision on LNG Canada — located in British Columbia on Canada's Pacific coast — with its partners in 2018. The project is due to come on line in 2024.

Direct access to the Pacific means that, like the Energia Costa Azul LNG project in Mexico, cargoes heading to northeast Asian markets will not have to transit the Panama Canal.

The recent buildout of liquefaction capacity in the US Gulf has significantly increased Panama transit demand, causing delays at the waterway when Asian LNG demand is strong enough to pull Atlantic volumes away from Europe and other demand regions in the basin.

By Samuel Good