BP expands its LNG tanker fleet

BP informed that it is taking delivery of six new LNG tankers, to respond to growing demand for lower-carbon energy sources around the world.

BP’s finance partners KMarin and ICBC Leasing are investing over $1 billion in the tankers, which will join existing tankers in BP Shipping’s fleet in 2018 and 2019.

The new ships are designed to be about 25% more fuel efficient than their predecessors, and will be fitted with a reliquefaction plant, meaning evaporated natural gas in the cargo tanks can be returned to the tanks as LNG, allowing the ships to deliver more LNG to the market.

The vessels will help service a 20-year liquefaction contract with the Freeport LNG facility in Texas, as well as other international LNG projects in BP’s global portfolio.

    “These vessels will significantly increase BP’s ability to safely transport LNG to anywhere in the world, directly supporting BP’s global natural gas strategy,” said BP Shipping CEO Susan Dio. “They also will be among the most fuel-efficient and technically advanced LNG tankers ever built.”

BP also participates in LNG projects in Australia, UAE, Indonesia, Trinidad and Angola.

The 2017 BP Energy Outlook forecasts that global LNG trade will grow seven times faster than pipeline gas trade, such that by 2035 it accounts for around half of all globally traded gas. The newly expanded BP Shipping fleet will deliver LNG volumes around the world.