Oil & Gas

The Middle East's cargo fleet is set to expand with eight new oil and gas tankers being built by a Korean company, aiming to meet customers' fuel demand. According to data reviewed by the Washington-based Specialized Energy Platform, the prominent South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean announced on Monday, July 1, 2024, that it had secured orders worth 2.15 trillion won ($1.55 billion) to construct these tankers for two Middle Eastern shipping companies.

In a regulatory filing, Hanwha Ocean disclosed that it would build four liquefied gas vessels for an undisclosed Middle Eastern shipping company at a cost of 1.43 trillion won ($1.04 billion) and four supertankers for another company valued at 719.6 billion won ($0.52 billion). Formerly known as Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Company, Hanwha Ocean has been the shipbuilding arm of Hanwha Chemical and Defense Industries Group since May of the previous year.

Since the beginning of this year, Hanwha Ocean has secured orders worth 5.3 billion won for the construction of 16 LNG tankers, seven VLCCs, two ammonia tankers, and one LPG tanker. In 2023, the company received tanker construction orders totaling approximately $3.5 billion. In March, Hanwha Ocean unveiled new details about the Qatar gas tanker deal, which Qatar Energy signed as part of its fleet expansion strategy, securing an order to build LNG carriers worth $1.84 billion.

In a significant milestone for South Korea's LNG construction sector, the delivery of its 500th tanker marked 30 years since the sector began in 1994. South Korea accounted for all new LNG carrier construction orders in the first quarter, with Qatar Power placing the majority of these orders. With a fleet of 680 LNG tankers worldwide, three-quarters built in South Korea, the country remains a global leader in LNG carrier construction, surpassing China as the world's premier shipbuilding center.