A number of factors, including instability in world oil markets at times, the return of bitter cold winters to the energy-hungry U.S. Northeast, and advances in the collection, transportation and cost-effective delivery of (primarily LNG) gas, have conspired to make this the decade of gas, and hence the decade of gas ships. According to the latest statistics from Lloyd's Register, up to 50 ships over the next 10 years will be required for delivery, given the LNG maintains its current eight percent growth rate. As the average 138,000 cu. m. LNG tanker is going for about $150 million, according to World Gas Intelligence, this makes an approximate market of $7.5 billion over the next decade, on the LNG side alone.