SFL orders five LNG dual-fuel container ships

Bermuda-based shipping firm SFL Corporation has placed an order for five new LNG dual-fuel container ships.

PHOTO: A large LNG tanker ship unloading its cargo. Getty Images

The five 16,800-TEU capacity vessels will be equipped with dual-fuel engines that can run on LNG and conventional marine fuels. They are expected to be delivered by 2028.

The container vessels will be constructed at an aggregate cost of about $1 billion, the company added.

SFL Corporation did not disclose any information about the shipbuilder contracted for this project.

Upon delivery, the vessels will be chartered to an unknown “leading liner company” for a period of at least 10 years. There will be an option to extend the charter agreement for two more years as well as purchase options at the end of 10 and 12 years, “including a profit share feature.”

LNG has been gaining popularity among shipowners. The global LNG-fuelled fleet is currently made up of 557 vessels, with another 160 expected to join this year, classification society DNV data shows.

LNG can curb carbon dioxide emissions by about a quarter compared to conventional bunker fuels. But its methane emissions can be 36 times more potent as a greenhouse gas (GHG) compared to carbon dioxide over a century, according to a World Bank study.

By Aparupa Mazumder 

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