China's Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding recently launched two new LNG carriers in a series.
One LNG carrier is slated for China National Offshore Oil Corporation while the other will be handed over to QatarEnergy upon completion. The acquisition of new ships is in line with QatarEnergy’s goal of operating over a hundred vessels to form what it claims will be the world’s largest single fleet of LNG carriers.
Upon completion, the newbuilds will each have an LOA of 299 metres, a beam of 46.4 metres, a depth of 26.25 metres, and a total cargo capacity of 174,000 cubic metres. Each ship will also boast a twin-skeg design as well as other systems for improving hydrodynamics.
Each LNG carrier will be powered by a dual-fuel diesel engine equipped with an intelligent control by exhaust recycling (ICER) system, which can help reduce methane slip in gas mode as well as greenhouse gas emissions.
By cooling and recirculating the exhaust gas, the ICER system will allow some of the methane in the exhaust gas to be re-combusted, thus further reducing the ship's emissions.