Ships carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) are now highly sought after among gas traders. European countries want to import more LNG to reduce their dependence on Russian gas, so companies like Shell and Total are seriously looking for suitable ships. But there are not many of them, which means that prices are rising sharply. The British business newspaper reported that financial times Based on a tour of ship owners and merchants.

Because of the war in Ukraine, gas supplies from Russia have come under severe pressure. To make sure there is enough gas, many European countries, including the Netherlands, are looking to use LNG as their lifeline. For example, the European Union wants to import an additional 50 billion cubic meters of LNG this year.

Gas traders want to meet this demand and they want to make sure they have enough vessels to do so. As a result, there is already a run on the tankers for the coming winter, while this run will only take place at the end of the summer.

According to a ship trader, the market has now completely exploded. To rent an LNG tanker for a year, gas traders are now paying $120,000 (111,000 euros) per day, 50 percent more than last year.

The Netherlands is one of the countries that sees LNG as a good alternative to Russian gas. So the Cabinet decided to invest, among other things, in a gas storage plant. This must be in the German port city of Hamburg.

However, experts point out that simply increasing storage capacity is not enough. They also believe that the amount of LNG produced worldwide should be increased.