Ethane-Crystal

The ABS-classed Ethane Crystal, the world’s first Very Large Ethane Carrier (VLEC) -- and a Maritime Reporter & Engineering News "Great Ship of 2016" as profiled in the December 2016 edition -- has loaded its first shipment of ethane cargo at Enterprise Products Partner’s Morgan’s Point Terminal. Delivered in November 2016, the Ethane Crystal is the first of six VLECs that will be delivered with ABS Class through 2017. The second vessel, the Ethane Emerald, was delivered in early December 2016. This state-of-the-art liquefied gas carrier is able to carry cargoes such as ethane and liquefied petroleum gases (LPG). With an 87,000 cbm cargo carrying capacity, the vessel was the first of its kind to be constructed with a specially designed GTT Mark III membrane cargo containment system. http://www.marinelink.com/news/largest-carrier-ethane419866

ABS, a leading provider of classification and technical services to the marine and offshore industries, has confirmed that the ABS-classed Ethane Crystal, the world’s first Very Large Ethane Carrier (VLEC), has been delivered to India’s Reliance Industries Ltd. by Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) of South Korea. The Ethane Crystal is the first of six VLECs to be delivered with ABS Class through 2017. This state-of-the-art liquefied gas carrier is able to carry cargoes such as ethane and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). With an 87,000 cbm cargo carrying capacity, the vessel is the first of its kind to be constructed with a specially designed GTT Mark III membrane cargo containment system. The vessel represents a significant step up from the largest ethane carriers delivered to date – the 37,000 cbm ABS-classed Navigator Aurora and Navigator Eclipse. The VLEC is comparable in size to today’s Very Large Gas Carrier (VLGC) and supports a more efficient operation that helps make large-scale ethane transportation more economically viable.

India’s largest private sector company Reliance Industries has inaugurated the world’s first Very Large Ethane Carriers (VLECs) at South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries where the ships were built. The two vessels, named Ethane Crystal and Ethane Emerald, are the first in a series of six VLECs ordered by Reliance in 2014 in response to the increase in United States gas production. The two vessels will be used to transport liquid ethane from the U.S. to India. The vessels are the first to feature new membrane technology from French specialist GTT, considered key to the execution of the project. With a capacity of 87,000 m³, the two vessels are the largest ethane carriers built to date. https://gcaptain.com/first-large-ethane-carriers-inaugurated-south-korea/