KSOE announces 391.7 billion won order for three LPG carriers from Liberian shipper

A liquefied petroleum gas carrier built by Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering in 2020. [KOREA SHIPBUILDING & OFFSHORE ENGINEERING]

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE) announced Monday that it had received an order for three liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers worth 391.7 billion won ($285 million) from a shipper in Liberia.

The three LPG carriers are in the 88,000-cubic-meter class, and will be built 230 meters (754 feet) wide, 32.25 meters across and 23.85 meters high. The 88,000-cubic-meter class is an increase of 2,000 cubic meters from the previous maximum size class, and is the largest that can pass through the Old Panama Canal.

An increasing number of shippers are choosing vessels that can pass through the Old Panama Canal, to avoid congestion and increased fares on the New Panama Canal.

The LPG carrier ordered this time will be equipped with an LPG dual fuel propulsion engine, and will be able to respond to the International Maritime Organization’s strengthened sulfur oxide emission regulations without a scrubber, an exhaust gas reduction device. It will also be able to transport ammonia, which is attracting attention as green energy.

Meanwhile, global LPG marine transport volume is expected to record 117 million tons in 2022 and is expected to increase by more than 3 percent to 121 billion tons next year, according to Clarkson Research, a shipbuilding and shipping market analysis agency.

“Inquiries about LPG carriers have been increasing recently and we expect that the market for LPG carriers will rebound,” said a spokesperson for KSOE.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]