Bureau Veritas classes world's largest bilobe LNG tanks

December 6, 2013

Leading international classification society Bureau Veritas is classing the world’s largest bilobe gas tanks. They are nearing completion at China’s Sinopacific yard and will be installed in a series of four 27,500 cu m semi-refrigerated LNG/Ethylene carriers building for Denmark’s Evergas.

Images by Bureau Veritas.

Each of the IMO Type C bilobe tanks has a capacity of 9,686 cu m. Two of the tanks in each vessel will be supplemented by a third conical Type C cargo tank and a smaller LNG fuel tank on the deck of the vessels.

Carlos Guerrero, manager gas carriers, Bureau Veritas, says, “These tanks are pushing at the frontier of small scale LNG transportation. They build on experience with ethylene transportation and can carry LPG or LNG at 5 bar pressure. That allows for the development of flexible ships which will meet the demands of the new LNG trades which are constantly emerging.”

Ralph Juhl, Vice President, Evergas, says, “We are really pleased with the way Sinopacific has built these world-beating tanks. Our new ships have to work in the roughest seas in the world so we wanted to build them tough and without a lot of deck clutter and exposed systems. These bilobe tanks enable us to have a flat main deck and they give us much better carrying capacity compared to cylindrical tanks in the same size ship. We are pleased to work with Sinopacific and Bureau Veritas to break new ground in gas transportation. Building bigger than ever before is always a challenge and the strength of the tanks must be calculated correctly, especially to allow for the increased liquid sloshing. The vessels’ stability and damage stability was also a matter of additional efforts on the drawing board.”

Evergas is building the ships at Sinopacific to BV class for 2015 delivery to service the trade between Marcus Hook, Philadelphia and Rafnes in Norway.

Evergas is amongst the world’s leading seaborne transporters of petrochemical gases and natural gas liquids. Our position has been reached through experience-based innovation and long-term dedication in making complex gas transports simple, safe and efficient. It is our clear ambition to continuously improve our services and set new standards for efficient and sustainable gas transport at sea.

Bureau Veritas is a world leader in conformity assessment and certification services. Created in 1828, the Group has 61,000 employees in around 1,330 offices and laboratories located in 140 countries. Bureau Veritas helps its clients to improve their performance by offering services and innovative solutions in order to ensure that their assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility.

Bureau Veritas press release