On September 9, QatarEnergy and Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), simultaneously announced that the two companies have signed a contract for the construction of 6 additional state-of-the-art QC-Max vessels, bringing the total number of LNG carriers on order under its fleet expansion program to 128, including 24 QC-Max mega vessels.
The QC-Max vessels, which will be built at China’s Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a wholly-owned CSSC subsidiary, are the largest LNG vessels ever built with a capacity of 271,000 cubic meters each. The new advanced carriers are scheduled to be delivered between 2028 and 2031.
The agreement was signed during a special ceremony held in Shanghai, by His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, Mr. Chen Jianliang, the Chairman of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co. Ltd, and Mr. Hu Kai, the President of China Shipbuilding Trading Co. Ltd. The ceremony was attended by Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the CEO of QatarEnergy LNG, Ms. Jia Haiying, Member of the Party Leadership Group and Chief Financial Officer of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), a number of senior Chinese government officials, and senior executives from QatarEnergy, QatarEnergy LNG and CSSC.
In his comments on this occasion, His Excellency Mr. Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi said: “The signing of today’s agreement is underscored by the strategic importance of QatarEnergy’s historic LNG fleet expansion program and its commitment to maintaining a leadership position in the global LNG market.”
H.E. Minister Al-Kaabi added: “We look forward to receiving these advanced LNG vessels and expanding our role in providing the world with the cleaner energy needed for a realistic and practical energy transition.”
The new ship order is a testament to QatarEnergy’s focus on quality and reliability. The six new advanced vessels are in addition to 18 QC-Max vessels recently ordered from Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard. This brings the total number of QC-Max vessels ordered by QatarEnergy to 24, with a total value of about USD 8 billion.
The QC-Max vessels, designed with cutting-edge technology, will enhance QatarEnergy’s capacity to meet the growing global LNG demand while reinforcing its dedication to operational excellence and environmental sustainability. With enhanced fuel efficiency and reduced emissions, these ships are engineered to meet the highest safety and environmental standards, representing a significant advancement in sustainable innovation.
So far, QatarEnergy has ordered two batches of 128 new vessels with four global shipbuilding companies. Among them, Hudong-Zhonghua has received orders for 12 large LNG carriers of 174,000 cubic meters and 24 ultra-large LNG carriers of 271,000 cubic meters.