/ By tjchinafreight ivy / Shipping

Over 20 ships awaiting loading in Qatar port! Global LNG shortages worsen

The global LNG shortage has worsened, with the number of empty ships waiting to unload from Qatar, the world's top exporter, to the highest level in nearly a year.

As many as 21 LNG carriers are currently awaiting shipments off the coast of Qatar, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Analysts at Bloomberg New Energy Finance (NEF) pointed to the recent surge in empty ships waiting to be loaded, raising concerns that in the past few more than 20 vessels were waiting to be loaded at Qatari ports.

Bloomberg analysts believe there could be several reasons for the surge in empty ships, such as a technical problem at an LNG processing plant or upstream facilities reducing production, or Qatargas changing its maintenance schedule, but in this case it should be There won't be so many ships lined up to load because buyers are notified in advance.

Qatar’s LNG exports in February were well below the average for the same period over the past five years, and total LNG exports in March were estimated at 6.5 million tonnes, also lower than the same period in the previous two years.

The LNG ships have sailed back to Qatar after unloading in China, Japan, India and Italy, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Typically, Qatar ships most of its LNG to Asian markets at this time of year, so Pacific buyers will be more sensitive to any supply disruption than Atlantic buyers.

Qatargas has yet to comment. Energy data provider Kayrros said Qatar Gas' No. 6 LNG liquefaction and purification plant was closed for more than a month before reopening on March 20.

Global LNG shortages intensify as Qatar exports dwindle and buyers in Asia and Europe try to find alternative sources of LNG outside of Russia, tightening the market and any supply disruption or production cuts will push up spot LNG prices.

Qatar Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi said Qatar will continue to supply LNG to Europe and will not transfer LNG to other customers. Still, he refused to impose sanctions on Russia, reiterating that a complete ban on Russian gas supplies to Europe was "practically impossible". Qatar supplies LNG to some European countries in the form of convertible contracts.

/ By tjchinafreight ivy / Shipping

South Korean shipbuilding industry returns to No. 1 after 7 years

With its strong performance in the field of LNG ships, the Korean shipbuilding industry has won half of the orders in the global newbuilding market.

According to data released by Clarkson on April 5, in the first quarter of this year, the global new ship order volume was 9.2 million revised gross tons (CGT), a decrease of 41% compared with the same period last year. Among them, South Korea undertook 4.57 million CGT, and the global The market share reached 49.7%, an increase of more than 12 percentage points from 37.2% in the first quarter of last year; China has undertaken 3.855 million CGT, and the global market share has dropped from 46% in the first quarter of last year to 41.9%; Japan has undertaken 248,400 CGT , the global market share fell to 2.7% from 12.8% in the same period last year.

This is the first time in the past seven years that a Korean shipping company has ranked first in the world in terms of orders received in the first quarter. At the same time, this is also the first time since Clarkson started statistics in 1996 that the number of orders received by South Korean shipping companies in the first quarter has reached about 50% of the global market share.

In addition, in March this year, the global order volume for new ships was 3.23 million CGT. The number of orders received by South Korean shipping companies also ranks first in the world in a single month, with a total of 1.64 million CGTs, accounting for 51% of the global share. Chinese shipbuilding companies ranked second with 1.36 million CGT orders, accounting for 42% of the global share.

As of the end of March, the number of global hand-held orders was 94.71 million CGT, an increase of 1.55 million CGT from the end of February. Among them, South Korean shipping companies have the largest increase in orders, reaching 1.12 million CGT; Chinese shipping companies have increased orders by 610,000 CGT, and Japanese orders have decreased by 240,000 CGT.

Industry insiders in South Korea said that last year, South Korea handed over the world's largest new ship order volume to China. In the first quarter of this year, the global new ship order transaction volume decreased significantly year-on-year, but South Korean shipbuilding companies worked hard and preemptively seized the place. The order finally overtook China to regain the first position. This is mainly due to the large number of LNG ship orders undertaken by South Korean shipbuilders. Regarding the reasons for the significant decrease in the number of orders received by Japanese shipbuilding companies, a Korean industry official explained that the data of the Japanese shipbuilding industry traditionally lags behind, so there may be changes in the future.

According to statistics, among the 38 large-scale LNG ships of 174,000 cubic meters or more ordered globally in the first quarter of this year, South Korea has undertaken 27 vessels, accounting for 71%; China has undertaken 11 vessels, accounting for 29%. In addition, a total of 44 container ships above 8000TEU have been ordered globally this year, of which South Korea has undertaken 21 ships, accounting for 47.7%.

A relevant person in the Korean industry said: "Although the number of new ship orders has decreased this year, Korean ship companies are benefiting from the booming LNG ship market. In the first quarter of this year, the number of LNG ships undertaken by Korean ship companies increased significantly, and the number of orders on hand It is also increasing, and the delivery time has been scheduled to the end of 2025. At present, European countries are looking for alternative sources of Russian energy, and the demand for LNG ships will continue in the future.”