Norwegian FSRU specialist Höegh LNG has taken delivery of Höegh Gannet, its ninth floating storage and regasification unit as well as its biggest, from Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea.
The dual-fuel diesel-electric propelled FSRU will be chartered as a conventional tanker with Naturgy under a 15-month contract, starting immediately after the positioning voyage from South Korea, Höegh announced on 6 December. This interim contract provides for a fixed day rate in line with the medium-term LNG carrier market.
At the end of the contract, Höegh Gannet will be signed to a long-term deal as a pure FSRU with an unnamed partner.
At a regasification rate of 1Bn ft3 a day and storage of 170,000 m3 of LNG, Höegh Gannet is the biggest FSRU built to date in terms of capacity, according to Höegh. The vessel is equipped with a reinforced GTT Mark III membrane containment system.
A specialist in FSRUs, Höegh said they offer “multiple clear advantages over a traditional onshore import terminal”, citing their speed of delivery and relatively low cost among other virtues. According to the company, FSRUs take half the time as fixed terminals on land to design, construct and put into service.
They are also half as expensive, with less risk of cost overruns because a significant amount of the construction is carried out by a highly specialised shipyard at a fixed price and a pre-arranged window for delivery.
The company also claims the environmental credentials of FSRUs exceed those of onshore facilities. Finally, “FSRUs have the flexibility to be relocated or used as an LNG carrier,” Höegh pointed out.
Höegh’s fleet of FSRUs are designed for superior fuel consumption. As well as the dual-fuel diesel-electric engine, they are installed with recondensers in each of the regasification trains for handling gas boil-off. The recondensers convert the excess boil-off back into the LNG tanks, producing important cost savings when operating in open-loop mode.
Höegh Gannet can be kept at sea for up to 20 years without being drydocked, with maintenance work and class renewal certification being done afloat.
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.