Doha-listed Nakilat is set to expand its owned LNG carrier fleet to 96 vessels as a result of charter awards from QatarEnergy and the addition of its own newbuildings, but the growth could soon top the 100 ship mark.
Announcing its quarterly results on Sunday, Nakilat highlighted it had been awarded long-term contracts and selected as the full owner and operator of up to 25 LNG carriers of 174,000-cbm by QatarEnergy.
These comprise all 17 of the berths declared by QatarEnergy at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries under Phase 2 of its huge LNG shipbuilding programme and eight of its 12 slots at Hanwha Ocean.
The company said the marked “a significant milestone” in its fleet expansion project aimed at meeting future LNG production demands for Qatar.
Nakilat also noted that it had ordered two 174,000-cbm LNG carrier newbuildings for its own account in January, along with four very large LPG/ammonia carriers.
The Qatari company already owns and operates 69 LNG carriers and manages one floating storage and regasification unit along with four VLGCs.
But there may be further fleet expansion in the pipeline.
TradeWinds reported in March that Nakilat is tipped to be awarded what is set to be 10 of 18 Q-Max-type LNG carrier newbuildings of about 271,000-cbm for QatarEnergy which are to be built at China’s Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group).
To date, the Qatari producer has declared eight Q-Max berths at the Chinese yard.
Nakilat’s fleet currently includes 14 Q-Max LNG carriers.
The Qatari shipowner reported a 6.1% increase in its first-quarter net profit, up at QAR 420m ($115m), from QAR 396m in the same period of 2023.
Total revenues grew by 1.2% to QAR 1.13bn from QAR 1.12bn in the same period a year ago. The company said this was mainly due to higher LNG and interest income.
Expenses for the quarter were down by about 1.4% at QAR 714m from QAR 723m in the corresponding period last year.
Nakilat’s net borrowings increased to QAR 19.4bn in the first quarter from QAR 17.6bn in full year 2023.
The company, which also operates a ship repair yard, attributed the improvement to its “operational effectiveness, efficient cost management and strong market demand for its LNG shipping services”.
Nakilat chief executive Abdullah Al Sulaiti said: “Despite [the] uncertain economic outlook and high-interest environment, we have remained committed to reliable and safe global operations, continuing to deliver clean energy to over 40 countries and about 100 terminals across continents.”
Al Sulaiti said the quarterly profit showed the resilience of the company and its innovative solutions.
