Shipowners have continued to secure berths for very large ammonia carriers (VLACs) in South Korea, with Greek players named as being behind newbuild orders at Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) and compatriot builder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI).
George Economou’s TMS Cardiff Gas has signed for two 88,000 cu m ships at SHI, lifting its VLAC orderbook at the yard to four. A deal worth around $237m will see the duo delivered by November 2027.
TMS Cardiff Gas’s owned fleet is expected to more than double in the next three years. The Athens-based outfit formed in 2011 manages 16 LNG carriers, nine of which are listed as fully owned. Seven more LNG newbuilds are set to join the fleet, in addition to the VLAC quartet.
Meanwhile, local newbuilding sources have linked Greek LNG owner Alpha Gas to a pair of VLACs most recently ordered at HD HHI for nearly $250m, with delivery by April 2027. The Anna Angelicoussis Kanellakis-controlled firm is also understood to having contracted rival Hanwha Ocean for two LPG/ammonia units announced Monday for about $248m, after previously booking four LNG carriers at the yard formerly known as Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME).
This year has kicked off with high demand for LPG/ammonia carrier newbuild berths, especially in South Korea. Shipyards under the holdings of HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) have to date secured 15 orders for such ships from the likes of Qatar’s Nakilat, Norway’s Solvang and Turkey’s PascoGas, while compatriot Samsung Heavy has recently added six similar newbuilds to its contract backlog. The latest order at HD HHI was announced Monday by an unnamed “Latin America” owner for three VLACs worth about $366m. In September, Evangelos Marinakis-led Capital Gas also signed for two 88,000 cu m VLACs at HD HHI in Ulsan. The ships are slated for delivery by the second half of 2027.
