Petronet LNG has sent out its newbuilding tender for a single LNG carrier to shipowners. The Indian importer plans to select a winner before the end of this year. Eight parties comprising a consortium of the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) bidding with Japanese owners Mitsui OSK Lines, NYK and K Line, Hanjin Shipping, BW Gas, Golar LNG, Teekay, Dynagas, GasLog and Tsakos Energy Navigation paired with Hyundai Merchant Marine are believed to have been pre-qualified for the tender. It is unclear as yet if all will respond. Bid partners Cardiff Marine and Marubeni missed out at the pre-qualification stage. Industry sources suggested their relative newcomer status in LNG carrier shipping may have been a key factor. Petronet had specified that those offering in must have at least three years’ experience. Shipowners are understood to be making enquiries with yards on the vessel. Petronet is seeking an LNG carrier of between 160,000 cbm and 216,000 cbm for 20 years. It can be either an existing ship younger than five years or a newbuilding. The importer is said to have a preference for a vessel of between 177,000 cbm and 180,000 cbm, which would indicate a newbuilding since there are few existing LNG carriers that would fit this range.The ship is required from the first half of 2016 to lift cargoes from Western Australia where Petronet has purchased 1.44 million tonnes per annum of LNG over a 20-year period from ExxonMobil’s off-take at the Gorgon LNG project. Cargoes will be shipped to Petronet’s upcoming 5 million tpa Kochi LNG receiving terminal. Petronet currently has three LNG carriers — the 138,000-cbm Disha and Raahi (both built 2004) and 155,000-cbm Aseem (built 2009) — on long-term charter lifting its shipments from Qatar. The company has a 3% equity stake in the Aseem and is anticipating a slightly larger shareholding in its upcoming fourth vessel. In tandem with the newbuilding tender, Petronet is still weighing up plans to acquire a floating storage and regasification unit as a fast-track bridging vessel for a new land-based LNG terminal, due on-stream in 2016, at Gangavaram in Andhra Pradesh on India’s east coast. The company received pre-qualification offers from eight parties earlier this year.