Cochin Shipyard, Samsung Heavy Pact for LNG Ship Project
Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with South Koreas second-largest shipbuilder, Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) to team up to bid for the GAIL (India) Ltd tender to build liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships. GAIL needs nine LNG carriers to haul natural gas from the US to India beginning December 2017. With this, Cochin Shipyard becomes the second local yard to secure a technology tie-up for LNG ships from one of the three top shipbuilders in South Korea, the world’s top shipbuilding nation. According to Express News Service, If Cochin Shipyard-Samsung wins the tender, the consortium is expected to secure orders for three ships, each costs around Rs 1500 crore.
LNG Carrier Anchored, Awaiting Dredging at Basin
The berth basin of the Petronet LNG terminal is not deep enough to facilitate the tanker vessel holding the terminal’s first consignment of LNG, forcing the ship to wait in anchorage at the Cochin Port as a navigable route is dredged, multiple news sources reported. The vessel is expected to sit for two or three days as the basin is dredged. The ship, WilEnergy, is carrying LNG from RasGas in Qatar to be delivered to the Rs 4,200 crore terminal. The LNG carried on WilEnergy is said to be primarily for the test of pipelines, with any surplus heading to distribution.
