Malaysia’s Petronas has emerged in the market with a tender for up to two small-scale LNG carrier newbuildings that can be used for LNG bunkering.
Brokers said the company is seeking offers to provide a 13,000-cbm vessel, in addition to an option for a second ship.
Offers are due at the end of this week.
Brokers said the newbuildings are likely to be priced at levels in the high $50m range. They said this would be up on last-done deals for this size range but reflective of the higher prices at shipyards on the back of steel and equipment price hikes seen in recent months.
While Petronas is collecting and assessing the bids, the energy company is expected to select a shipowner to contract the firm vessel.
Getting bigger
The capacity selected by the Malaysian company for the LNG bunker vessel (LNGBV) is another first.
The nearest in size to date have been ships of 12,000 cbm contracted by Mitsui OSK Lines for Total and 12,500-cbm vessels booked by Pavilion Energy and Peninsula for Scale Gas.
Brokers said LNGBVs and small-scale vessels are trending to larger sizes to dovetail with demand from some of the larger dual-fuel ships that have been ordered.
Currently, Petronas uses the 7,500-cbm Avenir Advantage (built 2020) to supply LNG bunkers to commercial vessels off Pasir Gudang and Pengerang, in southern Malaysia.
Petronas is chartering in the small-scale LNG carrier from Future Horizon, a joint venture between its shipping subsidiary MISC Berhad and small-scale LNG shipowner Avenir LNG. But the vessel is only employed on a three-year charter.
Market players speculated that the energy company may choose to replace this with the larger 13,000-cbm vessel on its delivery.
One small-scale LNG specialist said Petronas may also be considering locating an LNGBV close to its own LNG production at Bintulu. He said that for ships moving between Australia and China, this would shorten the diversion time for loading LNG bunkers by up to one-and-a-half days.
Petronas has shown its interest in expanding its operations to the wider Asian market.
In February, Petronas Trading teamed with Japan’s Sumitomo Corp to collaborate on LNG bunkering services outside their home markets.
