Greek shipping firm Tsakos Energy Navigation (TEN) has ordered four LNG-powered Aframax tankers at South Korea’s Daehan Shipbuilding.
The contract, TEN’s first investment in LNG-powered vessels, also includes two additional 115,000-dwt ships.
TEN opted for LNG fuel as owners look to adapt to more stringent IMO rules and slash emissions.
The two firms signed the contract on September 2. Daehan said in a statement the deal for the dual-fuel vessels has a price tag of 500 billion won ($417 million), including options.
The Korean yard said it would start working on the vessels next year and deliver them in 2023.
TEN said in its second-quarter results report that the LNG-powered vessels would go on long-term charter to a major oil concern, but it did not reveal the name of the firm.
Assuming all six are built, TEN expects gross revenues from these contracts to reach about $350 million.
Earlier this year, Nikolas Tsakos, founder and chief executive of TEN, said the firm was in negotiations to charter dual-fuel Aframax tankers to Norwegian energy giant Equinor.
Tsakos did not reveal any further information on the charter during the company’s second-quarter earnings call on Thursday.
He said that TEN sees dual-fuel technology as the medium-term solution from now until 2050.
“We are building ships that would last 20 to 25 years, and that’s why we took this decision,” he said.
