John Fredriksen’s Avance Gas is diversifying from VLGCs with an order for two mid-sized LPG/ammonia carriers in China.
The Oslo-listed company said the 40,000-cbm ships will run on LPG as well as compliant fuel oil.
They are due from CIMC in China in the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first three months of 2026.
The units will be equipped with shaft generators to further improve operational and maintenance costs, while boosting the environmental profile.
Avance Gas said seaborne ammonia trade is expected to grow significantly in coming years due to numerous blue and green ammonia projects.
The owner is paying $61.5m per ship, or $123m in total, a price it views as very favourable compared to recent similar orders.
The company has options for two more ships on the same terms.
Fearnley Securities said the price was highly attractive compared to broker values for dual-fuel ships of $70m.
Avance Gas has 14 VLGCs, with two more on order at Hanwha Ocean in South Korea.
Chief executive Oystein Kalleklev said the move broadens its product offering.
“These ships are not only perfect for the LPG trade but also ammonia trade as parcel sizes for ammonia cargoes tend to be in this size lot,” he added.
“Given the high expected growth of the ammonia trade, this makes the ships a very attractive addition to our fleet where we already have two VLGCs ready for burning ammonia and two VLGCs for delivery next year which can both carry and burn ammonia,” the CEO explained.
He pointed to a “substantial” cash balance of $220m at the end of the first quarter and strong bookings for the second and third quarters as evidence the shipowner has the capacity to fully finance the vessels without affecting dividend payouts.
