Nakilat and Maran in new LNG carrier joint venture

The new joint venture called Global Shipping will be 60% owned by Nakilat and 40% owned by Maran Ventures with four 173,400 cu m LNG carrier newbuilding currently under construction in Korea placed in the company. The four vessels will be managed and marketed by Nakilat.

Nakilat ceo Abdullah Al Sulaiti said, “This agreement is a step forward for the company as we expand our fleet with additional capacity to meet the growing international demand for clean energy. This has subsequently led to a significant increase in demand for LNG shipping, which we hope will have a positive effect on charter rates.”

The joint venture will effectively increase Nakilat's LNG carrier fleet to 74 or 11.5% of the global shipping fleet.

John Angelicoussis, chairman of Maran Venture said, “Nakilat has been one of our strategic partners for many years and we are pleased to be strengthening our relationship with them. Through this new venture, I am confident that we will continue to provide first-class services together for all our LNG customers around the world and look forward to further collaborations in the future.”

The two companies have an existing joint venture Maran Nakilat which has 15 LNG carriers in its fleet.

Read more: Nakilat and Maran jv to expand fleet of LNG carriers