Iran has signed preliminary agreements with South Korean, German and Chinese shipbuilders to construct high-tech LNG tankers as the country pushes to join the club of liquefied natural gas exporters.
"A MoU has been signed with a respectable German company which possesses the technology to build LNG tankers. Preliminary accords have also reached with several South Korean and Chinese firms," said project manager Esmaeil Sadeqi on Saturday, reported Press TV.
Based on the plan, foreign shipbuilders would help Iran construct LNG carriers in shipyards along its Persian Gulf coasts, he said.
Iran has already prepared two dry docks in Bandar Abbas to design and build natural gas delivery vessels, Sadeqi added.
"The possibility of building LNG tankers and Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) exists in the country. Hence, we plan to create grounds for the construction of LNG vessels in cooperation with a foreign company."
Iran's sprawling shipbuilding industry is chiefly devoted to constructing oil tankers and container ships as well as other maritime structures.
The country owns the world's largest fleet of oil supertankers consisting of 42 VLCCs, each able to carry 2 million barrels of oil.
For LNG tankers, however, there is no established infrastructure and the country has to start from scratch. "Through transfer of technology, we can begin constructing LNG carriers which involves a complex technology," Sadeqi said.
European investment in FLNG industry
The National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) is set to finalize negotiations with Europe's largest company in manufacturing Iran's first-ever FLNG facility.
"With the removal of sanctions and finalization of the talks, the foreign firm will begin LNG production in Iran," Alireza Kameli told Shana.
Since manufacturing FLNG vessels is highly economical, he added, they are being considered as an alternative LNG production project.
In October, the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) announced that it will conclude the contract on transaction of flaring gases from three oilfields which will be the country's first water-based project of floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG).
"Out of the three contracts on selling flaring gases, one is being drafted with the objective of producing maritime LNG," said Ali Kardour, NIOC's deputy managing director for investment and finance.
LNG tankers are special carriers which super-cool the gas to -162° Celsius for long-haul shipments.
South Korea's Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering and Samsung Heavy Industries are the world's leading builders of LNG delivery vessels which are witnessing tremendous growth.
Head of NIOC sees Iran joining the club of LNG exporters in the next two years, which would crucially strengthen the resource-rich country's presence in the energy market.
Iran possesses the world's largest proven gas reserves, with a potential to become a top producer. The country plans to build a capacity to export 40 million metric tons of LNG a year.