TIMELINE OF LNG CARRIER CONSTRUCTION

1998

In response to the central government's call for made-in-China vessels, China State Shipbuilding Corp Ltd's Shanghai-based subsidiary Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co Ltd, launches its LNG carrier project which features patented technology for liquefied cargo containment system from Gaztransport &Technigaz (GTT) of France.

2001

After seven months of research and development, Hudong-Zhonghua successfully builds a prototype for the No 96 cargo containment system, which is certified by GTT and classification societies in the UK, US, France, Norway, and Japan.

March 2002

Hudong-Zhonghua wins a bid to construct two 147,000-cubic-meter LNG carriers.

December 15, 2004

The construction of China's first domestically-built LNG carrier kicks of at Hudong-Zhonghua.

April 3, 2008

Dapeng Sun, China's first self-built LNG carrier, is delivered to its owner by Hudong-Zhonghua, ending the domination of Japanese and South Korean shipyards in building LNG carriers.

2008 to 2021

Hudong-Zhonghua develops five generations of LNG carriers, the Changqing series (2004), the Changjian series (2010), the Chang'an series (2012), the Changxing series (2017). On December 16, 2021, Hudong-Zhonghua unveils the fifth generation 174,000-cubic-meter LNG vessel from its Changheng series, and receives orders of building 37 vessels in 2022.The Shanghai-based shipyard has so far delivered more than 40 LNG vessels.

March 2022

Jiangnan Shipyard (Group) Co Ltd and Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co Ltd receive their first large scale LNG carrier orders. This marks each company's foray into the LNG vessel construction industry.

2022

China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC) receives orders for 49 units of the new LNG carrier. The new orders catapult China State Shipbuilding Corp's global market share from less than 7 percent in 2021 to about 30 percent in 2022.