Golar LNG said today that it is in final discussions to further increase the Company’s new building investment, after it has ordered two tankers worth about $4oo million, from Hyundai Heavy.
This includes ordinary LNG carriers as well as ordering more infrastructure type LNG assets, Golar said in a statement .
“ The Board has in the recent months been in discussions with several yards with respect to increasing the size of the Company’s new building program. The fact that ship newbuilding prices in general are under some pressure and also that the new tri-fuel engines are significantly cheaper to operate than the previous generation steam turbine ships makes newbuildings attractive. The Company believes that it is important to get new capacity delivered as early as possible in order to position Golar for the anticipated large LNG volume increases expected to come from Australia and possibly the US in 2015 – 2016 ,” Golar said.
Chairman John Fredriksen said: “ We are excited to see the rapid developments in the LNG market. We clearly see LNG as one of the key parts in the future energy supply chain. The increased flexibility provided by floating production and regas solutions has transformed the LNG industry and made it significantly more competitive versus other energy types. The large global spreads in gas prices, the high growth in trade, and the tight availability of shipping gives this investment a solid foundation .”
[mappress] LNG World News Staff, February 14, 2012; Image: Golar LNG