LNG Carriers "SHARQ" and "SHRA'OUH" named for Qatar Energy
On December 3rd, naming ceremonies were held at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. in South Korea for two newbuilding 174,000m3 (membrane) LNG carriers for QatarEnergy, a state-owned energy company owned by Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K"K" Line) through its joint venture. In the presence of many concerned parties, the first vessel was christened "SHARQ" by the wife of Chairman Koichi Myochin, and the second vessel was christened "SHRA'OUH" by the wife of Takaya Soga, President and CEO of Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha. The vessels' names are derived from the names of a city in eastern Qatar (SHARQ) and an island in Qatar (SHRA'OUH).
These two vessels will be the seventh and eighth to enter service, respectively, out of a total of 12 LNG carriers that the NYK joint venture will build for Qatar Energy. Furthermore, SHARQ will be the first of three of these 12 vessels for which the NYK Group will assume ship management responsibility.
QatarEnergy is the world's largest LNG producer, and this vessel will be used to transport LNG to countries around the world. The new vessel will be equipped with the X-DF 2.1 iCER engine, which will contribute to reducing GHG emissions and will also reduce environmental impact through fuel-efficient operation at a wide range of ship speeds.
In its medium-term management plan announced in May 2022, NYK positioned the LNG carrier business as one of its growth drivers. NYK will strengthen its stable revenue-generating business through long-term contracts and implement growth strategies that accurately respond to changing customer needs in order to capture expanding energy demand.