NYK and Sinopec sign LNG transportation charter deal
NYK and Sinopec sign LNG transportation charter deal - Offshore Energy
NYK and Sinopec sign LNG transportation charter deal
Japan’s shipping company NYK has concluded a long-term time-charter contract for LNG transportation with China’s energy company China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec).
The contract is for the transport of LNG to China for up to 23 years, beginning in 2024 or later.
NYK said that this time-charter contract will support China’s energy transition toward carbon neutrality, adding that NYK will build a good partnership with Sinopec through stable transportation and contribute to the global energy transition from coal to natural gas.
To note, this deal is NYK’s third conclusion of time-charter contracts with energy companies based in China.
In May 2022, the shipping major, through its subsidiary, signed a long-term charter contract with CNOOC Gas and Power Singapore Trading & Marketing, a group company of China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), for six liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.
At the time, it also entered into a shipbuilding contract for the vessels with China’s Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding and signed a project head of agreement with a subsidiary of shipping company China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES) to jointly own and manage the vessels.
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Related Knowledge Center: Liquefied natural gas
Driven by plentiful natural gas produced from shale plays, the United States began exporting liquefied natural gas in 2016 when the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana opened and shipped its first cargo. Since then, additional capacity, or trains, have been added to Sabine Pass, and terminals have become operational in Cameron Parish, La.; Hackberry, La.; Cove Point, Md.; and Corpus Christi, Texas. The Energy Information Administration projects that U.S. LNG export capacity will reach 8.9 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) by the end of 2019, making it the third largest in the world, behind Australia and Qatar. The tariff war with China has the potential to impact some final investment decisions for additional terminals in the coming months.