Belgian shipowner books 20,000 cbm LNG bunker vessel at China’s CIMC SOE

Chinese shipbuilder CIMC Sinopacific Offshore & Engineering (CIMC SOE) has secured a new contract to build a 20,000 cubic meter (cbm) LNG bunkering vessel.

According to Greece’s Intermodal Shipbrokers, the order came from Belgian shipowner Somtrans.

The 20,000 cbm LNG bunkering vessel is scheduled for delivery in 2027. The price for the newbuild was not disclosed.

The family-run tanker shipping company owns and operates 24 barges with capacities ranging between 1,905 cbm and 13,461 cbm. Hence, the newly ordered bunkering vessel will be the unit with the largest capacity in Somtrans’ fleet.

China’s CIMC SOE is also building three units with the same capacity for European and Singaporean shipowners. Two of these 20,000 cbm LNG bunkering vessels were ordered by UK-based midstream LNG & BioLNG company Avenir LNG and one by Singapore’s Vitol International Shipping.

The orders come at the time of increased demand for LNG bunker vessels and port infrastructure, with an additional 57 ports expected to be upgraded with LNG bunkering facilities by the end of 2026, thanks to the rise in the adoption of LNG as a marine fuel and a robust orderbook of LNG-capable vessels.

According to Intermodal Shipbrokers’ report from March, an influx of eight newbuild orders totaling 137,900 cbm was seen in February 2025, bringing the overall orderbook to 28 vessels with a combined capacity of 481,400 cbm.

The orderbook-to-fleet ratio stands at 183%, implying strong growth dynamics. Additionally, the average size of newly ordered LNG bunkering vessels has increased to 17,179 cbm, compared to the current average of 8,225 cbm, signaling a shift towards larger units.