Photo: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue

LNG Ship

There has been a growth in the consumption of natural gas in the global economy, particularly for power generation. Natural gas is one of the cleanest and most energy efficient fossil fuel. As the demand for natural gas increases, so does the need to transport it. While the great majority of natural gas is shipped through pipelines, additional demands in Japan, Western Europe and the United States required the construction of specialized natural gas carriers to carry this commodity over very long distances. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is a liquid form of natural gas which is much easier to transport. Through a cryogenic process where the temperature is brought down to -256 oF, natural gas loses 610 times its volume. Thus, significant quantities of natural gas can be transported. However, establishing a distribution system for LNG is complex and costly. It involves extraction, liquefaction, shipping, storage and re-gasification. South Korea accounts for 70% of LNG ships production with builders including Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (World�s largest), Hyundai Heavy Industry, and Samsung Heavy Industries. Construction costs are very high; $200 million for a 200,000 cubic meter ship. As of 2005, 182 LNG carriers totaling a capacity of 21.8 million cubic meters were available.