Berge Danuta takes new heat exchangers to sea

Bergesen has taken delivery of the first of a pair of gas carriers fitted with a reliquefaction plant utilising plate-type heat exchangers. With an established reputation for a high quality, well-maintained fleet of vessels, and experienced sea-going and shore-based staff, Bergesen is well known for `quality tonnage`, and for technical innovation. As of the end of 2000, Bergesen owned and/or operated a fleet of 110 vessels (including newbuildings), of which 74 were gas carriers. In fact, Bergesen owns or operates more gas carriers than any other shipowner, running ships as small as 8,000m3 capacity right up to very large vessels. Around one third of the gas carriers it operates are of in excess of 75,000m3 capacity, and recently two much larger newbuildings, each of 138,000m3, were also ordered, at Daewoo in Korea, marking Bergesen`s entry into the LNG market. For the foreseeable future, however, gas transportation by LPG will remain Bergesen`s largest business area, accounting for more than 60% of the book value of its fleet and generating more than half of its operating profit. Bergesen`s latest pair of newbuildings were contracted in Poland, at the flourishing Stocznia Gdynia shipyard, in response to a long-term charter from Navion, and will be operated by Bergesen`s subsidiary, Green Tankers. The contract also included an option for four more ships of the same type, but market conditions – and the fact that there are already a large number of LPG newbuilds contracted elsewhere – were to mean that Bergesen decided not to exercise the options. Stocznia Gdynia won the contract because it presented an extremely competitive price – $63 million, compared with some bids of in excess of $80 million. Unlike the large LNG carriers the company also has on order, however, the new LPG ships are noteworthy not so much for their size as for the fact that they are the first gas carriers to have been fitted with a type of reliquefaction plant utilising plate-type heat exchangers rather than shell and tube condensers.