Navigator Gas taps Chinese yards for VLEC newbuilding pair

Navigator Holdings, operating as Navigator Gas and owner of a fleet of handysize liquefied gas carriers, has entered into contracts to build two new 48,500-cubic-metre capacity liquefied ethylene gas (LEG) carriers with Chinese shipbuilders the Jiangnan Shipyard Group and China Shipbuilding Trading.

The newbuildings are scheduled to be delivered to the Navigator Holdings in March 2027 and July 2027, respectively, at an average price of US$102.9 million per vessel.

The vessels will be able to carry a wide variety of gas products, ranging from complex petrochemical gases, such as ethylene and ethane, to LPG and clean ammonia.

The vessels will be fitted with dual-fuel engines for ethane, a low-carbon intensity transitional fuel, and will be made retrofit-ready for using ammonia as a fuel in the near future. Additionally, the vessels will be capable of transiting through both the former and the new Panama Canal locks, providing enhanced flexibility.

Navigator has also agreed on an option with the sellers for an additional two LEG carriers of the same specification and price as the newbuilding vessels. If this option is exercised, these vessels will be delivered in November 2027 and January 2028, respectively.