Very large ethane carriers (VLECs) are likely to top out at a maximum size of 90,000 cbm to enable them to access planned receiving terminals.
They could be larger using LNG designs, explains Lloyd’s Register (LR) Marine global strategic marketing manager Luis Benito, but their size is likely to be dictated by receiving terminals in India and China.
Benito, who has been working on ethane designs with the LR team for around 18 months, predicts a global demand for between 20 and 30 VLECs but admits the figure may prove very conservative especially given recent indications from the US on its planned ethane exports.
“It
