Daily charter rates for modern LNG carriers have smashed firmly through the six-figure barrier and are expected to go on rising across all ship types as charterers' requirements continue to exceed the number of vessels available.
Talk was tearing round the market that the Tokyo LNG Tankers-controlled 166,686-cbm newbuilding Energy Glory had been fixed to the Tangguh LNG project at a rate in the region of $130,000 per day.
Some linked the fixture to cover for vessels which may be affected by the US sanctions against Cosco companies and hinted that this could be another factor in the rates surge.
Shipbroker Fearnleys pegged daily rates for ME-GI and XDF LNG tonnage at $150,000, with tri-fuel diesel-electric ships following in their wake at $130,000 and steam turbine vessels bringing up the rear at $90,000.
These are huge rises on last-done, particularly for the older ships and brokers said the numbers are changing rapidly with the expectation that they will shift further skywards.
Fearnleys described current sentiment as “extremely bullish” and said owners with vessels available for charter from end-October to November are “carefully evaluating their options.”
The broker cited the lack of firm vessel availability and the rush of spot cargoes seen earlier as the drivers for the rate hike.
Fearnleys said: “The table turned as owners began requestion offers instead of offering their ships to charterers.
“Ships were snapped up almost immediately at terms favourable to the owners,” it continued.
One happy owner, John Fredriksen-controlled Flex LNG which has a raft of speculatively-ordered LNG newbuilding delivering, felt it had been proved right.
Chief executive Oystein Kalleklev told TradeWinds: "The market has tightened very quickly due to lack of available ships. At the same time, there are uncertainties in the market which means fewer re-lets."
"Although gas prices are still fairly low, volume growth is very high with about 30 million tonnes of new LNG volumes this year equating to demand for about 50 ships while there are around 40 ships being delivered," Kalleklev explained.
"The winter market has turned out tight as we have pointed out despite this being very early in the season," he added.
Fearnleys said the rate hike shows how illiquid the LNG shipping market is and the high volatility it can generate.
"With the amount of cargoes still left uncovered, we would expect rates to continue to soar this week," the broker said.
