What the Most Expensive Ship Will Buy You...

VesselsValue.com has initiated a summer series looking at the most expensive live vessels and what they could buy you outside of shipping.

This week focuses on the most expensive live vessel - The Zarga.

Q-Max is a type of ship, specifically a membrane type liquefied natural gas carrier. In the name Q-Max, "Q" stands for Qatar and "Max" for the maximum size of ship able to dock at the LNG terminals in Qatar. Ships of this type are the largest LNG carriers in the world. A ship of Q-Max size is 345 meters (1,132 ft) long and measures 53.8 meters (177 ft) wide and 34.7 meters (114 ft) high, with a draft of approximately 12 meters (39 ft).

Q-Max LNG carriers are operated by the STASCo (Shell International Trading and Shipping Company, London part of Shell International). They are owned by Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat) and they are chartered to Qatar's LNG producers Qatargas and RasGas. In total, contracts have been signed for the construction of 14 Q-Max vessels.