ADNOC Logistics and Services (L&S) announced that AW Shipping, its joint venture with Wanhua Chemical Group, has awarded contracts worth AED 918 million ($250 million) to China’s Jiangnan Shipyard for two additional Very Large Ammonia Carriers (VLACs).
The shipbuilding contracts were signed in Abu Dhabi on the sideline of an opening ceremony for Jiangnan Shipyard’s first office in the Middle East.
Initial contracts for two vessels with the option for a further two were signed by the companies in China in July 2024.
Captain Abdulkareem Al Masabi, Chairman of AW Shipping and CEO of ADNOC L&S, said these contracts demonstrated AW Shipping and ADNOC L&S’s commitment to meeting future demand for lower-carbon energy sources such as ammonia, which are increasingly vital in powering the energy transition.
The VLACs each have a carrying capacity of 93,000 cubic meters of ammonia, making them among the largest ammonia carriers in the world.
Scheduled to be delivered between 2027 and 2028, the vessels will be equipped with energy-efficient dual-fuel engines capable of operating on liquefied petroleum gas or conventional fuels.
Lin Ou, Chairman of Jiangnan Shipyard, said the signing of these two additional VLAC contracts further deepens the cooperation and friendship among ADNOC L&S, Wanhua Chemical and Jiangnan Shipyard, which is a concrete embodiment of the joint practice of decarbonizing industrial process by all parties, and injects new impetus into the future energy transition.
“CSSC Jiangnan Shipyard will take the Middle East Representative Office as a new starting point to strengthen cooperation with oil and gas companies, shipping companies and other related enterprises in Middle Eastern countries, while paying attention to the market demands for energy transportation and marine equipment, and continuously innovating and improving across multiple fields,” Ou said.
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