BIMCO to start work on LNG Bunker Purchase Contract in January

Two gas-related contracts expected to take 18 months to complete.

Shell's Cardissa vessel (right) bunkered the world's first LNG-powered Aframax tanker, Gagarin Prospect (left), in Rotterdam's maiden ship-to-ship LNG bunker delivery. Image credit: Port of Rotterdam Authority

Updated on 20 Nov 2018 07:10 GMT

BIMCO is to start work on developing an LNG Bunker Purchase Contract in early 2019. The new contract, together with an LPG Voyage Charter Party, are planned to be developed in Asia in an effort to further increase the involvement of the shipping association's members in the region. Work on the two documents is to begin in January 2019 and is expected to take approximately 18 months to complete. "An alternative fuels contract and a voyage charter for LPG are two key projects which have global resonance," remarked Grant Hunter, Head of Contracts and Clauses at BIMCO. "This is an opportunity for BIMCO to optimise its documentary work by sharing some of the project tasks among Asian membership resources," Hunter said. BIMCO says it is drafting teams for the two projects from China, Japan and Singapore, with additional expertise from European based members. The project is to be headed by Wei Zhuang, BIMCO's Asia Regional Manager based in Shanghai. "I'm looking forward to bringing some of our important documentary work to the Asian region where there is solid demand for BIMCO's contracts and clauses," Zhuang remarked.