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BW LNG confirms order for two high-spec LNG carriers
US$508M BW LNG order at HD Hyundai Samho underlines continued Korean dominance in large, fuel-efficient LNG carriers
BW LNG, a unit of Singapore-based BW Group, confirmed it has ordered two LNG carriers from South Korea’s HD Hyundai Samho, firming up a contract worth about US$508M that the yard’s parent, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, initially disclosed last week without naming the owner.
The Oslo-based operator said in a social media post that the LNG newbuildings are scheduled for delivery Q4 2028.
According to BW LNG, the twin LNG carriers, designated H8340 and H8341, will each have a capacity of 177,000 m³ and feature what the company described as a “state-of-the-art design that enables the industry’s lowest fuel consumption and emissions.”
The vessels will be fitted with XDF 2.2 propulsion with variable compression ratio, shaft generators and a full reliquefaction system, and incorporate “interesting technical options” that BW LNG said it intends to develop further in collaboration with future charterers.
The order was already visible in newbuilding market data before BW LNG went public.
BRL’s Week 48 newbuilding report logged two liquid natural gas carriers for BW LNG at Hyundai Samho, flagged to Liberia and priced at about US$254M per ship, with deliveries scheduled towards the end of the decade.
BW LNG’s latest order builds on an existing expansion programme: the company’s fleet now comprises 29 vessels, including nine steam turbine LNG carriers built between 2004 and 2008, alongside four floating storage and regasification units.
Clarksons’ data underlined how the move fitted into a still-elevated LNG carrier orderbook but a much quieter contracting year.
At the start of November, the fleet of large LNG carriers above 40,000 m³ stood at 779 vessels, backed by an orderbook of 278 units, equivalent to about 36% of the fleet in numerical terms and just under 40% on a capacity basis.
Yet new orders for large LNG carriers booked so far in 2025 amounted to only about 3.1M m³ of capacity, down 76% year-on-year, even as owners set a record for LNG bunkering vessel orders, with 24 contracts placed, up 80% on the prior year.
Against that backdrop of high, but cooling, prices and a sizeable LNG carrier backlog, BW LNG’s latest investment reinforced South Korean yards’ grip on the large LNG carrier segment and signalled continued appetite among experienced operators for the most energy-efficient tonnage available.
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