Record numbers of LNG-fuelled ships ordered in 2021

A record 240 LNG-fuelled ships were ordered in 2021, classification society DNV reported on January 5, as shipowners increasingly adopt the fuel as a means of decarbonising their operations.

Orders slowed down towards the end of 2021, with only two more LNG-powered ships ordered in December, DNV said. Nevertheless, the overall count for 2021 is more than the orders in the previous four years combined.

"And this in spite of LNG bunker fuel reaching completely unforeseen high price levels all through the second half," DNV said.

Proponents of LNG bunkering also point to the fuel's cost competitiveness. Despite the current spike in prices, industry association SEA-LNG recently argued that long-term, the fuel has been structurally lower cost than oil-based alternatives over the past few decades.