In the first half of 2022, the European Union (EU) was the largest LNG importer, with 24 percent of the world's traded volume of liquefied natural gas were in the 27 EU member States, followed by Japan, with 19 percent, China with 15, and Korea, with 11 percent. Compared to the previous year, the LNG grown-imports to the EU in the first six months to 60 percent. The largest LNG exporter in the United States, with a market share of 21 per cent, followed by Australia, Qatar and Russia.
With the liquefied natural gas to the European countries want to solve from the Russian state company Gazprom, and a feared Gasstopp equip. But there are bottlenecks in LNG imports, especially in Germany. There is not a single LNG Terminal. For the German market LNG imports come on Landing in the Netherlands, Belgium and France. Until the beginning of next year, the first two floating LNG terminal is to go to the German North sea coast in operation.
It hooks in the infrastructure: "We have Gas, but we find no tankers".
Gas on the world market available, albeit at exorbitant prices. But it hooks in the transport infrastructure. "We have Gas, but we find no tankers", describes a ship broker in Piraeus the Situation. According to the Brokerage firm Clarksons at the end of April of this year, worldwide 641 LNG tankers with a total capacity of 103.8 million cubic meters. Ten years ago, the global transport capacity was just under 52 million cubic meters. According to the calculations of the market observers and market observers will double the demand for LNG transport capacity by 2040.
The LNG
LNG (liquefied Natural Gas) is produced by cooling natural gas to a temperature of 162 degrees Celsius. It is liquefied, and one six-hundredth of its volume is compressed. As tankers to transport. The first LNG carrier, the "Methane Pioneer", crossed in 1959, the Atlantic, and brought liquefied natural gas from Louisiana to the United Kingdom. At the receiver, the liquefied Gas into LNG is mixed-Terminals in the gaseous state and in line to the grid. Gas producers and consumers by liquefied petroleum gas independent of Pipelines. LNG has made the gas trading to a worldwide business.
But the logistics is already at its limits. According to data from ship brokers, there is currently no single free LNG tankers in the Atlantic for a short-term Charter. In the Asian region, there is the so-called spot market only available Tanker. The great demand for transport capacity drives up Charter rates. In the trade between the United States and Europe Charter rates to be called of $ 100,000 and more per day and paid over $ 80,000 a year ago.
Also, the prices for new ships rise.
With the gas prices and Charter rates, prices for new buildings to rise. A LNG-Tanker of the most common size class of 174,000 cubic metres capacity a year ago for about $ 195 million, at a cost, the price is now approaching the threshold of $ 250 million. According to the calculations of the ship evaluation platform Vessels Value, the prices for newly appointed LNG tankers increased in the month of June to around 3 per cent.
The Greek shipowner George Economou for his shipping company TMS Cardiff Gas has ordered in may 2022 at the Korean shipyard Hyundai Heavy Industries for two LNG carriers, each of 174,000 cubic metres capacity. According to information from Vessels Value is the price per ship, amounted to 231 million dollars. In the June order Economou, according to the Vessels Value in the shipyard of two identical ships. This time, the unit price was already 243,5 million dollars.
A fifth of the global LNG cargo is handled by a Greek company.
The Greek shipowner indoor and shipowners have recognized the Trend towards LNG earlier than most of their foreign competitors. You have been investing for about five years heavily in LNG tankers and control today, a fifth of the world's Tonnage. The largest LNG tanker fleet is part of Maran Gas by Maria Angelicoussi. The Greek has 45 of these ships, and ordered another eleven guest anchor. The shipowner Peter Livanos has 35 units, George Prokopiou follows with 17 LNG tankers and George Economou, with 16 ships.
The Federal network Agency is satisfied with the filling of the gas storage in Germany
Also in the case of new orders, the Greeks dominate: 127 new LNG tankers, which were at the end of 2021 in the order books of the yards, 57 built for the account of Greek shipowners indoor and shipowners. German shipping companies play in this booming market segment, not a role. You ignored the Trend, so far, completely. In the German commercial fleet there is not a single guest anchor that can transport LNG over long distances. During the German shipowners were inside and shipowners off, attacked the Greek and the Greeks, the secured delivery items at the shipyards and benefit rates from rising chart.
The Federal government has already secured several special-purpose ships Bottlenecks it is not only in the transport capacity, but also in the regasification facilities in which the LNG from tankers pumped back into a gaseous state and transferred into the grid. Expected in early 2023 is to be taken in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel four floating storage and regasification units (FSRU) in operation.
Two of these special ships chartered by the Federal government by the shipping company Dynagas of the Greeks George Prokopiou, two more by the Norwegian shipping company Monday LNG. The FSRU, the shortages are even greater than in the case of the tankers. In Europe alone, 16 FSRU projects in the planning. Worldwide there are, however, only 45 of these special ships, five more are under construction. Most of these hybrid ships are chartered out as a Tanker or terminal for the long term. The construction of a FSRU currently costs approximately $ 400 million. Who ordered today, can only be expected in five years, with free delivery.
On the construction of Liquefied gas tankers specialized shipyards in the far East can't complain about orders. According to Clarksons were ordered in the first six months of this year, 94 LNG tankers, compared to 86 in the entire previous year.
Almost 90 percent of the current order volume is attributable to three major Korean shipyards Hyundai, Samsung and Daewoo. The Rest comes from Farms in China and Japan.
The high order backlog, it is expected that the transport bottlenecks in the second half of this decade will relax. In the short term, tank capacity, however, remains scarce, because who is today a new ship in order, have to wait a long time: Free delivery items, there are, according to market observers, and observers only in the second half of the year 2026.
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