Jiangnan Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), has received a batch order for the 150,000 m³ Ultra-Large Ethane Carrier (ULEC), which was independently developed by Jiangnan Shipbuilding, marking another breakthrough for China’s shipbuilding industry in the field of gas carriers.
Industry sources report that Singapore-based diversified shipping company Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS), led by Idan Ofer, has ordered six 150,000 m³ ULECs from Jiangnan Shipbuilding and is negotiating with South Korea’s HD Hyundai Group to build two similarly sized ULECs. The new vessel is expected to be delivered in 2027, when it will be operated on a long-term charter by private chemical giant Satellite Chemical Co Ltd (Satellite Chemical).
Jiangnan Shipbuilding’s 150,000 m³ ULEC will cost $200 million for a unit, and the six new vessels will be worth a total of $1.2 billion ( about RMB 8.693 billion), the sources said. The new vessels will be equipped with B-tanks that can carry ethane, ethylene and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).Clarkson data show that the current global handheld orders for VLECs total 41 units, with Jiangnan Shipbuilding, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding holding 30, 8, and 3 units, respectively.
It is understood that Jiangnan Shipbuilding started to promote the development of the 150,000m3 ULEC in 2019. On June 4, 2024, the world’s largest and the world’s first 150,000m3 ULEC design with the second-generation “BrilliancE® II” Type B tank, developed and designed by Jiangnan Shipbuilding, was awarded the Approval-in-Principle (AiP) certificate by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS).
According to the family tree of Jiangnan Shipbuilding’s ships, the 150,000 m³ ULEC will be named “Panda 150E”, which will be available in three- and four-compartment configurations for the length of the charter and the handling capacity of the loading and unloading terminals, with the “BrilliancE® II” Type B containment system featuring a lightweight design to meet the draft requirements in U.S. waters.
The development of this ULEC has gathered Jiangnan Shipbuilding’s rich experience of more than 20 years in plowing full-cooled liquefied gas carriers, broken through a series of key technological bottlenecks, and formed the BType B cryogenic containment system (BrilliancE®) with completely independent intellectual property rights, which has been successfully applied to the world’s largest and the world’s first ultra-large full-cooled ethane carrier, and the technical indexes have reached the leading level in the international market.
In addition, not long ago, Jiangnan Shipbuilding announced that it has signed a contract with AW Shipping, a strategic joint venture between ANDOC Logistics & Services, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), and Wanhua Chemical, for the construction of nine 99,000m3VLECs with a total value of $1.4bn, and a unit cost of $156m.AW Shipping has also ordered 2+2 93,000m3VLACs from Jiangnan Shipbuilding, with a total value of $500m and a unit cost of $125m.AW Shipping has also ordered 2+2 93,000 m3 Very Large Ammonia Carriers (VLAC) from Jiangnan Shipbuilding at the same time, with a total value of $500 million and a cost of $125 million each.
The 99,000m3 VLEC is the world’s largest capacity VLEC (PANDA 99E), which is independently developed and designed by Jiangnan Shipbuilding, especially its core cryogenic cargo containment system is the independently innovated and developed B-tank (BrillianceE®).
With an overall length of 230 meters, a beam of 36.6 meters and a depth of 22.5 meters, the VLEC is suitable for transporting various liquefied gases such as ethane, ethylene and LPG. With the advantages of low oil (gas) consumption, small BOR, no liquid level loading restriction, low maintenance cost, etc., this VLEC is the best choice for long-distance transportation of ethane, with remarkable economic and social benefits.