Russia’s Sovcomflot has ordered a pair of LNG-fuelled aframax tankers at Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex.
The two vessels, financed by VEB-Leasing, will go on 20-year time charters to Rosneft.
The tankers will be 1A/1B ice classed in order to operate in harsh ice conditions such as the sub-Arctic areas and Baltic region, while the technical specification of the tankers will reflect 2020 regulations on emissions.
Sergey Frank, president and CEO of Sovcomflot, commented: “We welcome the plans of the Russian shipbuilders, from Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex, to create modern large-capacity vessels using natural gas-based bunkers (LNG) as their primary fuel. I’m sure that it is with such vessels that the future of merchant shipping lies.
“Sovcomflot is the world leader in the Aframax tanker segment, with our vessels serving the needs of the largest oil and gas companies for safe transportation of crude oil in the Baltic, North Sea, Black Sea, Mediterranean, Sea of Okhotsk and the Sea of Japan.”
