Greek shipowner Minerva Marine has locked in employment for two of five LNG newbuildings it has on order at two shipyards, brokers said.

The Andreas Martinos-controlled company is understood to have secured business for the first of its five vessels to an energy major charterer for a three-year period.

Some brokers named the charterer as Shell, while others said the vessel was fixed to BP.

The initial deal on a 173,400-cbm LNG newbuilding at DSME is said to have been concluded some time ago, possibly late last year. But details have only recently started to emerge.

Those following the ME-GI ship, currently listed as the Minerva Psara, said it will be delivered in November, although it is shown on databases as due for handover in January 2021.

Brokers said Minerva has also fixed a second ship more recently but to a different energy major charterer.

While rates have fallen for LNG carriers in recent weeks, brokers pegged them at levels in the mid to high-$50,000 per day range for period charters of this length on ex-yard newbuildings.

Minerva declined to comment for this story.

The Greek owner made its break into LNG shipping in March 2018, joining the crush at yards for gas tonnage and ordering two vessels at DSME priced at just shy of $183m each.

The company then shifted over to Samsung Heavy Industries in early December where Minerva contracted a single 174,000-cbm vessel with X-DF propulsion. It was priced at around $185m for delivery in January 2021.

A second vessel was added at SHI before the year closed and in May 2019 the company firmed up a third vessel at the yard, giving it a total of five, apparently speculatively-contracted LNG newbuildings.

The SHI ships are being built with GTT’s Mark III Flex Plus containment system, which offers a 0.07% cargo boil-off rate.

Earlier this month TradeWinds reported that around one third of on-order LNG newbuildings remain unchartered.

Of 132 large LNG carriers and floating storage and regasification units on order, 45 appeared to have no firm charters, which amounts to about 34%.

Some 30 LNG carriers are due for delivery this year.