Exmar Takes Delivery of First FSRU Barge
Belgian LNG shipowner Exmar said late December 21 it had taken delivery of the "world’s first barge-based floating storage and regasification unit" (FSRU) and secured long-term employment for the unit.
The unit has a regasification capacity of up to 600mn ft3/d (6.2bn m3/yr) and can store 26,000 m³ of LNG, and it came from the Wison Shipyard in Nantong, China.
Exmar said the unit is "perfectly positioned to add value in medium-sized LNG import projects all over the world in a fast track, flexible and cost efficient way." It also confirmed the FSRU barge's long-term employment with a "reputable" unnamed counterpart, for hire from mid-2018 onwards, adding it would provide further details regarding this contract in the near future in coordination with the customer.
Exmar CEO Nicolas Saverys said: "The delivery of the FSRU is a testimony of Exmar’s commitment to continuously improve the solutions we offer to the LNG supply chain industry. I am very pleased and honoured that long-term employment for the FSRU was secured prior to delivery."
Exmar has now ordered two barges from Wison: the Caribbean FLNG was delivered in July this year. But it took until June 2017 for Exmar to secure the necessary $200mn of financing to pay off the Chinese shipyard after the ship's original customer cancelled its charter and Exmar has yet to confirm any employment arrangement for the vessel. The second barge delivered by Wison to Exmar is this FSRU.
Wison said: "It is the first ever FSRU project undertaken by a Chinese company on EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) basis. The project was executed with a quest for efficiency and openness to innovation. For instance, modularised approach shortened the schedule and lowered the risks associated in construction phase, while a dedicated cargo handling system for the SPB tanks has been developed."
Wison's project director at Nantong, Huaqing Wei, said: "We are glad to continue working with Exmar on the first-of-its-kind floating LNG projects and feel grateful for concerted efforts by all partners who made it happen."
Exmar's barge-based FSRU at Wison's Nantong shipyard (courtesy of Wison)