Floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) specialist Golar LNG has marked its exit from the LNG shipping business with the sale of its last remaining gas carrier.
The Nasdaq-listed company is shipping out the 2003-built steam turbine LNG carrier, Golar Arctic, for $24m.
The Tor Olav Trøim-backed company said the 140,000 cu m vessel should change hands in the first quarter, without naming the buyer.
Golar had been exploring alternatives for the Golar Arctic ever since its sale to Italian state-controlled gas grid operator Snam fell through in 2023.
The vessel was earmarked for a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) conversion in 2022 under a $283m deal that did not materialise in time.
“The sale of the Golar Arctic marks the conclusion of Golar’s planned exit from the LNG shipping segment, 50 years after taking delivery of our first LNG carrier in 1975,” said Golar CEO Karl Fredrik Staubo, adding: “Over the last 50 years LNG shipping has been the foundation for Golar’s pioneering maritime LNG infrastructure advances, including FSRUs and FLNGs. Golar’s transition into a focused FLNG infrastructure company is now complete.”
Golar’s other LNG carrier, the 2004-built 148,000 cu m Fuji LNG, discharged its last cargo in January and has now arrived in China for conversion into an MKII FLNG at the CIMC shipyard.
The converted 3.5mtpa unit is expected for delivery in 2027, joining Golar’s two operational FLNGs, Hilli and Gimi.
