Another Victory
Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) maintains its good performance in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier market. It is continuously making successes in getting orders in LNG carrier market, which has become a niche market, while orders of offshore plant are slowing down due to global low oil prices.
The DSME announced on Dec. 15 that it signed a contract to provide 6 LNG carriers worth 1.3658 trillion won (US$1.2429 billion) to a European shipowner. The amount accounts for 8.9 percent of the DSME sales of last year. According to the shipbuilding industry, this contract is with major global oil company BP, who placed the order.
The performance of the DSME has reached more than 400 percent of the original goal in the business of gas carriers by obtaining orders worth US$7.7 billion from 28 LNG carriers and 12 LPG carriers. The trend is likely to continue next year, because the orders of Russia's Yamal project are waiting.
Experts are also presenting positive analyses. Researcher from Daishin Securities Jeon Jae-cheon said in a report, “The market share of DSME increased to 69 percent this year,” adding, “DSME is providing excellent engine systems based on patents.”
However, recent low oil prices will become a burden for the DSME, because there is a high possibility of a drop-off in growth if offshore plant orders are not continuously placed.