China’s Dalian Shipbuilding Delivers its First LNG Newbuild

 

Chinese shipbuilding’s efforts to chip away at South Korea’s domination of the LNG carrier market took another step forward as Dalian Shipbuilding delivered its first newbuild LNG carrier. The vessel is the first of eight being built for China Merchants Energy Shipping and is being highlighted as DSCI’s first independently designed vessel in this key segment of the industry.

Parent company China State Shipbuilding Company hailed the vessel as part of the “crown jewel of the shipbuilding industry.” It highlights the “extremely high design and construction difficulty” for LNG carriers as another demonstration of China’s expanding expertise in shipbuilding. The handover celebration took place in Dalian on Wednesday, September 24. 

Chinese yards have begun to break into the LNG segment, building for both domestic carriers such as CMES and for export. They were successful in winning a few international orders linked to Qatar and its massive shipbuilding program. LNG carriers had traditionally been the domain of the South Korean yards, which still win the majority of the orders for these vessels.

While they are highlighting the domestic shipbuilding capabilities, the new ship Sea Spirit uses the well-established GTT Mark III membrane containment system along with a reliquification unit. France’s Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) remains the supplier of the containment systems to the world’s carriers despite efforts to develop competing systems.

The new ship is otherwise a fairly standard LNG carrier with a capacity of 175,000 cbm. DSIC highlights that by employing the standard size, the vessel will be able to dock at the vast majority of LNG terminals worldwide. They report the ship will have "excellent port adaptability and ship-to-shore compatibility." The ship is 295 meters (968 feet) in length. It is powered by an LNG dual-fuel low-speed main engine.

China Merchants ordered its first LNG carriers from DSIC in 2022. The initial order was for two ships with options that were later exercised. The order has been expanded to eight ships, and they will operate through a number of joint ventures, including with PetroChina and Sinochem. In 2024, NYK announced the formation of its sixth shipmanagement company, OPearl, which it said would manage LNG carriers, including six vessels that will be chartered to CNOOC Gas and Power Singapore Trading & Marketing. China Merchants is a partner along with CETS Investment Management (HK) Co., a subsidiary of the CNOOC Group, in the management company.

DSIC floated the first ship in May 2024 and reported that sea trials combined with gas trials were completed in July 2025. The yard has also launched Sea Navigator, Sea Creation, Sea Argosy, Sea Energy, and Sea Charity, as it works to fill out the order.