Gas importer Gail (India) has returned to the market for an LNG carrier to take on a long-term charter that could cover a hire period extending out for 11 years.
Brokers said the company is seeking a two-stroke vessel of between 159,000 cbm and 181,000 cbm for delivery within the year, starting on 1 January 2027.
Gail wants to take a ship on charter for a minimum of seven years and is also considering extending the hire out through to the end of 2038.
The company has specified delivery of the vessel at the Cove Point or Sabine Pass LNG terminals in the US and redelivery of the ship in the Atlantic basin or India.
Gail has also floated the option of taking up to a 26% equity stake in the chartered vessel.
Firm offers on the business are due on 20 August.
Those following the business said it is difficult to make a rate estimate on tonnage for 2027 delivery over this period.
One commented that technically a $260m LNG carrier newbuilding requires a rate in the region of $100,000 per day to provide a “decent return” on the investment.
But he said redelivering vessels contracted at lower prices may require less, although their efficiencies are unlikely to match those of new ships.
Gail has been a regular in the market with time-charter requirements on LNG carrier tonnage.
As the company started ramping up its US LNG purchases around 12 years ago, Gail toyed with the best options for building up its own fleet of vessels to transport its volumes.
Instead, the company opted to take a mix of vessels on long-term charter and spot hire while targeting trade swaps on its LNG imports to cut the cost of shipping and reduce its risk.
Gail currently has five LNG carriers on time charter. Two of these vessels have been supplied by Japan’s Mitsui OSK Lines and one by NYK. A Shell vessel will go on a two-year hire to the Indian company shortly.
In May, Gail fixed a Cool Co newbuilding delivering towards the end of 2024 for 14 years with the option to extend the hire for a further two years.
Gail is one of the world’s top 10 buyers of LNG.
The company needs shipping for the 5.8m tonnes per annum of LNG it is purchasing from the US.
It also buys over 12.5 mtpa of LNG from companies including QatarEnergy, SEFE, Petronet, Vitol and Adnoc.
