KSOE wins $765 mln order for 3 LNG carriers

Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co. (KSOE) said Thursday it has clinched a $765 million order to build three liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers for a North American shipper.

KSOE said in a regulatory filing that Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries Co., one of its three affiliates, will build the vessels at its shipyard in the southwestern port of Yeongam.

The 174,000-cubic-meter LNG carriers will be delivered to the undisclosed shipping company in stages by the end of 2027, KSOE said.

The value of a per-ship order stands at $255 million, the highest-ever amount among LNG carriers of the same size, the shipyard said.

So far this year, KSOE, a subholding company of shipbuilding, oil refining and machinery conglomerate HD Hyundai, has bagged $6.11 billion in orders to construct 44 ships, or 38.8 percent of its yearly target of $15.74 billion.

KSOE has three subsidiaries under its wing — Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co. and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries.