Last segment - LNG shipping.
Few publicly traded entities left in this space. A couple of big names, Teekay’s gas tanker subsidiary (TGP) and Gaslog (GLOG) were taken private the last couple of years, and Golar (GLNG) sold its fleet to a third party. On the publicly traded side, there’s Gaslog Partners (GLOP), Dynagas (DLNG) and Flex LNG (FLNG) as LNG tanker pure-plays, and Capital Product Partners (CPLP) as a hybrid.
Three-to-Four years ago, one could order a new LNG tanker for around $200M-a-pop. Costs have gone up, so prices are now $247M - $275M per vessel (South Korean shipyard). Relevant because a majority of FLNG’s fleet of13 vessels were acquired from a third party while the respective LNG tanker was still being constructed. That said, a similar situation is less likely to play out today.
Why? Qatar.
For their future LNG projects, Qatar took up lots and lots of South Korean shipbuilding slots. Then shortly thereafter, picked up a bunch of Chinese shipyard slots. If a third party LNG tanker owner runs into financing issues today, they could likely get Qatar assistance in exchange for allowing Qatar to use vessel.
How is this related to FLNG? Well, the company announced their Q3 2022 results, and shortly afterwards, a second Press release regarding a $100M at-the-market (ATM) offering. Slightly puzzled. But leaning towards the idea that FLNG is looking to expand its fleet. Let’s see what develops.
In the interim, HohumYNWA is sitting back and harvesting dividends.