World's Largest Ethane Dual-fuel Carrier Delivered in Shanghai

The first ship (H2781) of the world's largest very large ethane dual-fuel carrier (VLEC) series with a capacity of 99,000 cubic meters built by Jiangnan Shipyard, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited, "GAS CHANGJIANG" was officially named and delivered.

This type of ship is independently developed and designed by Jiangnan Shipyard, especially its core cryogenic cargo containment system is a independently developed B-type tank. This type of ship has a total length of 230 meters, a beam of 36.6 meters, and a depth of 22.5 meters. It is classified by the American Bureau of Shipping and is suitable for transporting various liquefied gases such as ethane, ethylene and LPG. It has the advantages of low oil (gas) consumption, low evaporation rate, no liquid level loading restrictions, and low maintenance costs.

This type of ship is the best ship type "tailor-made" for long-distance transportation of ethane, and has won the highest award in the shipbuilding industry - the Special Prize for Science and Technology. It is reported that Jiangnan Shipyard has 32 VLEC orders so far, accounting for 80.2% of the global market share in terms of capacity, which also indicates that VLEC designed and built in China and using Chinese core technology has reached the world's leading level.

Ethane is an organic compound with the structural formula CH3CH3. It is a colorless and odorless gas that is insoluble in water. It is the second member of the alkane series and the simplest hydrocarbon containing a carbon-carbon single bond. The content of ethane in some natural gas is 5% to 10%, second only to methane; and it exists in petroleum in a dissolved state. Ethane is often used as outdoor fuel and refrigerant.

China's ethane dependence on foreign countries is constantly increasing. As of 2017, China's ethane dependence on foreign countries has reached 11%. It is estimated that China will become the world's major ethane market in the future. Based on the application characteristics and scope of ethane, China's consumption of ethane products has become increasingly vigorous in recent years, and the consumption of ethane has always been higher than the output of ethane, showing a market situation of "supply exceeding demand".