On November 24, the first 174,000 cubic meter LNG carrier, the “Qing Cheng”号, built by Hudong-Zhonghua for the third phase of the COSCO SHIPPING PetroChina International LNG transportation project, was named and delivered ahead of schedule. This is the seventh large LNG carrier delivered by Hudong-Zhonghua for this project, bringing the company’s total LNG carrier deliveries for the year to nine, setting a new record for annual LNG carrier deliveries in China.
More than 100 guests attended the naming and delivery ceremony, including representatives from PetroChina Engineering, PetroChina International, Kunlun Financial Leasing, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation, Hudong-Zhonghua, as well as from upstream and downstream industries, classification societies, and financial institutions. Ms. Wang Xinge, General Manager and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of PetroChina Engineering, served as the naming sponsor and cut the ribbon for the new vessel. Chen Jianliang, Party Secretary and Chairman of Hudong-Zhonghua, presented flowers to the naming sponsor. Luo Yizhou, General Manager and Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of PetroChina International, Zhu MaiJin, Director and General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation, and Weng Hongbing, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and General Manager of Hudong-Zhonghua, delivered speeches at the ceremony.
The shipowner’s representatives – Lin Nan, Director and General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Energy (Shanghai) LNG; Wang Qiang, Deputy General Manager of PetroChina International Shipping Company; Ji Mingsi, Deputy General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Petroleum Transportation Co., Ltd.; the representative from Kunlun Financial Leasing – Lin Jiannan, Assistant General Manager of Kunlun Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.; the representative from China Shipbuilding Trading Company – Lu Xinwei, Deputy General Manager of the Third Ship and Ocean Business Department of China Shipbuilding Trading Co., Ltd.; and the builder’s representative – Shen Ning, Marketing Director of Hudong-Zhonghua, jointly signed the delivery documents.
The shipowner’s representative, Lin Nan, Director and General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Energy (Shanghai) LNG, and the charterer’s representative, Luo Yizhou, General Manager of PetroChina International, signed the charter party documents.
The “Qing Cheng”号, independently developed by Hudong-Zhonghua, has a total length of 295 meters, a beam of 45 meters, a depth of 26.25 meters, and a service speed of 19.5 knots. It is classed by Lloyd’s Register (LR) and the China Classification Society (CCS). It features low evaporation rate, low energy consumption, high reliability, high environmental performance, strong versatility, and excellent economy, among other characteristics. The containment system of this ship type has a reliquefaction capacity of 1.5 /hour, allowing it to adapt to different boil-off gas balance utilization requirements during operation. Simultaneously, this ship type adopts the global latest generation dual-fuel low-speed propulsion power system, utilizes domestically produced propellers, and has re-optimized the ship-engine-propeller matching, resulting in a 1.25% reduction in main engine power and further lowering fuel consumption. Both the main engine and generators are equipped with SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction), enabling both fuel oil and gas modes to meet the world’s most stringent environmental emission requirements.
Since the inception of the COSCO SHIPPING PetroChina International LNG project, PetroChina International, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation, and Hudong-Zhonghua have collaborated closely, working with Kunlun Financial Leasing to implement full-chain RMB settlement, jointly creating the first benchmark LNG transportation project with a purely Chinese background. The breakthrough achievement of full-chain RMB settlement for chartering, shipbuilding, and financing not only provides a unique “Chinese Solution” for constructing the LNG industrial chain financial ecosystem but also establishes a new, replicable, and promotable paradigm for RMB settlement.
During the project construction, all parties united their efforts to compose a magnificent chapter. The eight 174,000 cubic meter LNG carriers contracted across the three phases of this project have set a benchmark model for the deep coordination of China’s LNG industrial and supply chains. Currently, the “Shao Lin”, “Wu Dang”, “Kun Lun”, “E Mei”, “Hua Shan”, and “Kong Tong” from the first and second phases have all been delivered. These “Six Major Schools” are operating stably and performing contracts efficiently. Through the dual-mode operation of project vessels and spot vessels, they have completed ship-shore matching at over 100 ports worldwide, safely and efficiently transporting a total of more than 5 million tons of LNG cargo. Subsequently, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation will strengthen strategic coordination and work with its extensive partners to jointly build a new ecosystem for the high-quality development of the energy industrial chain.
Hudong-Zhonghua and COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation have a long history of cooperation, having jointly built 43 LNG carriers, with the construction of another 21 vessels steadily progressing. COSCO SHIPPING praised Hudong-Zhonghua for advancing lean management and smart manufacturing, using exquisite technology and reliable quality to build Chinese “energy giants” that sail the oceans. Hudong-Zhonghua upholds the craftsman spirit of striving for perfection, providing the most solid guarantee for the high-quality implementation of the project.
