GTT-COSCO collab sets out to strengthen LNG, ethane shipping sector

French LNG containment specialist GTT has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with China’s COSCO Shipping LNG Investment and COSCO Shipping Heavy Industries to explore joint development of LNG carriers, ethane carriers, floating LNG (FLNG) units, and crude carriers.

For GTT, this is the first agreement with COSCO Shipping LNG, which specializes in LNG transportation project investment, shipbuilding, and management.

The French firm collaborated previously with COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry on newbuilding, maintenance, and retrofits of LNG carriers and LNG-fueled ships under the agreement from January 2018, which was renewed in May 2020.

The new agreement will see the three companies cooperate on developing LNG carriers, ultra large ethane carriers (ULECs), very large ethane carriers (VLECs), FLNG, and using LNG and ammonia as fuel solutions for very large crude carriers (VLCCs).

In addition, the agreement seeks to foster closer collaboration between their technical divisions to promote the application of GTT’s membrane technology in the above fields.

Adnan Ezzarhouni, General Manager of GTT China, said: “We are proud to start this strategic cooperation with CSLNG and CHI. This partnership not only reinforces the trust between ship-owners, shipyards and GTT but also paves the way for delivering innovating and efficient solutions to meet the evolving requirements of the energy industry.”

Qin Jiong, Vice General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation and Chairman of COSCO Shipping LNG Investment, added: “We are pleased to partner with GTT in the development of multi-gas vessels. By leveraging the respective strength of CSLNG, CHI and GTT, we aim to create cutting-edge products and services that deliver maximum value to all our stakeholders.”

Sun Yingshui, Deputy General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Heavy Industries, highlighted that this “partnership is set to drive a range of ambitious projects from innovation to education”.

GTT has also recently signed a strategic cooperation agreement with China Offshore Engineering & Technology to optimize solutions for FLNG and floating storage and regasification units (FSRU).