In this article, we will be taking a look at the top 13 gas tanker shipping companies in world.
Gas shipping companies, or LNG shipping companies, are used to transfer liquified natural gas from one place to another. The cheapest most efficient, and therefore the most common way to transport LNG is through ships. Often times, LNG plants are located in remote areas where it can be quite hard to get to and proper transportation infrastructure may not exist which often makes shipping the only method of transport. LNG ships are special types of ships which contain special ports built to accommodate LNG. These tanks are temperature controlled and heavily insulated, kept to temperatures below -162 C to ensure that LNG stays in a liquid state.
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While there are hundreds of LNG ships globally, operated by some of the biggest oil and gas companies in the world, these ships can be mainly divided into three categories: fully pressurized, semi-pressurized and refrigerated, and fully refrigerated. The first ever gas ship in the world was called the Methane Princess which, along with Methane Progress, entered service in 1964 to ship LNG from the United Kingdom to Algeria, and was owned by corporations which are still among the biggest gas tanker shipping companies in the world.
For LNG to be received, specific LNG import terminals are built which have the infrastructure to quickly load LNG from the ship into containers for storage and then to be distributed to the local grid. While the LNG shipping industry isn’t just important but integral to most countries, the industry still faces a lot of challenges that need to be tackled to ensure consistent growth and improvement. One of the biggest challenges the industry has faced in recent times is the suspension of gas supplies to various countries as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent sanctions imposed by Western nations. Russia demanded that European countries pay for the gas in rubles, which the countries refused and hence the gas supply was cut off. The U.S. has committed to increasing gas supply to Europe as a result but a fire in major terminal has made this an issue as well. Energy prices in Europe have soared as a result of limited supply and with winter starting and temperatures dropping below freezing, many people are struggling to maintain even basic warmth due to the high costs of energy prices, especially in the United Kingdom.
Because of the Russian war, the outlook of the LNG shipping industry is a bit uncertain, as analysts are unsure how long the war will last. Furthermore, according to S&P Global, there is a lack of adequate natural gas tankers as demand continues to increase massively and the lack of ships will result in higher shipping rates and hence, higher LNG costs. There is high demand from Asia and Europe as well especially as Russia is no longer a viable supplier. Governments in both continents are vying for cargo which is also increasing the prices.
The biggest gas shipping companies in the world are also among the biggest oil and gas companies in the world with revenues often exceeding $100 billion and in one case, even exceeding $400 billion. The total market is also more than $1 trillion combined. With all data taken from Yahoo Finance, we used market cap, revenue, profit / loss and assets of each company, assigning 30% weightage to the first three criteria and 10% weightage to the last one. So, let’s take a look at the companies behind one of the most important industries right now, starting with number 13:
13. Qatar Gas Transport Company
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $5,799
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $989
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $408
Total assets of the company (in millions): $8,875
12. MISC Integrated
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $7,330
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $2,423
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $394
Total assets of the company (in millions): $13,062
11. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $8,650
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $9,294
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $5,189
Total assets of the company (in millions): $19,672
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines is one of the largest gas shipping companies in Japan. It was the first company in Asia to operate an ice-breaking LNG carrier, when it did so in 2018. This was done for the Yamal LNG project. In 2022, the company ordered 16 ocean-going LNG vessels.
10. Gazprom Group
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $61,631
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $87,700
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $2,250
Total assets of the company (in millions): $324,000
Gazprom Group may be among the biggest gas shipping companies in the world but it may drop out soon thanks to sanctions from Western nations and Russia’s decision to cut off gas supply to many European countries.
9. BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $102,849
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $222,689
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $-10,964
Total assets of the company (in millions): $287,272
One of the largest oil and gas companies headquartered in the UK, BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) is infamous because of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, the largest oil spill in history which cost BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) more than $65 billion in cleanup costs, fines and settlements. BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) owns a fleet technologically advanced and relatively fuel efficient tankers for the transportation of LNG with its partnership class vessels having a capacity of 173,400 cubic meters.
8. Eni S.p.A. (NYSE:E)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $52,687
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $134,373
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $17,644
Total assets of the company (in millions): $144,903
The biggest energy company in Italy, Eni S.p.A. (NYSE:E) has operations in nearly 70 countries while it is owned primarily by the Italian government. Eni S.p.A. uses its subsidiary LNG Shipping SpA, which it 100% owns, to transport and ship LNG while using two proprietary LNG tankers called LNG Lerici and LNG Portovenere with each ship boasting a capacity of 65,000 cubic meters.
7. ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $137,093
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $75,056
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $18,058
Total assets of the company (in millions): $90,661
One of the biggest gas shipping companies in the world, ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) is headquartered in Texas and has operations in 15 countries, with nearly half its production coming from the United States alone. ConocoPhillips uses double-hulled vessels for its LNG transportation, which it has been engaged in for over half a century without any accident whatsoever. On land, ConocoPhillips uses specially engineered and constructed double-walled storage containers for the storage of LNG.
6. Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $112,387
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $147,288
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $24,219
Total assets of the company (in millions): $147,120
Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) is one of the biggest oil and gas companies in Europe and the biggest company in Norway. Headquartered in Oslo, Equinor ASA has operations in 36 countries, mostly within Europe. Equinor ASA is engaged in more than 4,300 voyages across the sea annually, making use of more than 150 ships to transport not just LNG but crude oil as well.
5. China National Petroleum Corporation
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $127,630
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $402,009
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $8,533
Total assets of the company (in millions): $600,368
One of the biggest companies in the world by revenue alone, China National Petroleum has the highest revenue of any gas shipping company out there. China National Petroleum Corporation saw its first LNG ship being built and completing a trial voyage in August 2022, in joint partnership with COSCO Shipping Lines, one of the largest shipping companies in the world. The LNG carrier has a capacity of 174,000 cbm LNG.
4. TotalEnergies SE (NYSE:TTE)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $149,300
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $254,655
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $23,099
Total assets of the company (in millions): $293,458
TotalEnergies SE (NYSE:TTE) is the biggest oil and gas company in France. For several decades, TotalEnergies SE has been closely involved in the LNG supply chain, not to mention extraction and liquefaction as well. TotalEnergies SE recognizes the importance of LNG in a world where demand continues to grow and is making investments to ensure that it continues to be a world leader in this respect. The company has also made significant investments in LNG bunkering infrastructure in major ports to ensure easy supply and transportation of LNG.
3. Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $334,384
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $227,055
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $34,167
Total assets of the company (in millions): $239,535
Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) is an American oil and gas company, and one of the biggest gas shipping companies in the world. Chevron Corporation is involved in all segments of the oil and gas industry, from exploration and mining to marketing and transportation and it is the latter which is relevant for our purposes. Chevron Shipping Company is responsible for the shipping of LNG.
2. Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $201,308
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $365,921
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $43,360
Total assets of the company (in millions): $404,379
Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) is a British company headquartered in London, though for decades it was headquartered in the Netherlands and incorporated as Royal Dutch Shell. Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) claims to be an LNG pioneer, having been involved in the industry for more than five decades. In 2018, Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) chartered four LNG ships while also signing agreements in Europe for 15 dual-fuel inland barges to transport mineral oil products in northwest Europe, which will run mainly on LNG.
1. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM)
Total market cap of the company (in millions): $442,675
Total revenue of the company (in millions): $386,816
Total profit / loss of the company from continuing operations (in millions): $51,860
Total assets of the company (in millions): $338,923
Topping the list of the top 13 gas shipping companies in the world is Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM). Exxon Mobil Corporation is the most valuable oil and gas company in the world. Recently, Exxon Mobil Corporation announced that it had added two more LNG vessels to its fleet in order to be able to meet growing demand for LNG.
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