Construction starts on Seaspan’s 1st LNG bunker vessel at CIMC SOE

February 3, 2023, by Fatima Bahtić

Chinese shipbuilder CIMC Sinopacific Offshore & Engineering (CIMC SOE) has started construction of the first 7,600-cbm liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering vessel for Canadian shipowner Seaspan.

The construction started on 2 February, at the Chinese yard. The ship will have a total length of 112.8 meters, a molded breadth of 18.6 meters, and a design draft of 5 meters. It will be able to travel at a speed of 13 knots and classed by French classification society Bureau Veritas (BV).

The ship will encompass the latest environmentally-friendly features to achieve net-zero targets. The capacity of power storage system will be improved to further reduce operational pollution emissions and greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition, the ship is equipped with relevant propellers, which have excellent maneuverability, and can be applied to LNG loading, unloading and bunkering services in different situations. The performance indicators of the ship have reached the international advanced level, according to the company.

LNG has been seen as a transitional fuel with great potential to reduce harmful emissions. Compared with traditional marine fuel oil, clean energy ships have lower carbon emissions, can achieve zero sulfur oxide emissions, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Under the circumstances that the market demand for LNG-powered ships will increase significantly, the interest for LNG bunkering ships will have a good development prospect.

According to the forecast classification society DNV, in 2023, the global order for new ships with alternative fuels will remain similar to that in 2022. The vast majority of ships will use LNG as a dual fuel, and the international ship LNG bunkering market demand is expected to grow in 2024 and 2025.

The Chinese shipbuilder signed an agreement with Seaspan for the construction of two 7,600-cbm LNG bunker vessels, with the option for a third vessel, in May last year. Chinese shipyard selected TGE Marine’s compressors for the vessels.