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July 7, 2003 Gaz de France goes to Alstom for LNG carrier Gaz de France has signed a letter of intent with Alstom's Chantiers de l'Atlantique for a 153,000 cubic meter LNG tanker. Delivery is slated for October 2005. The ship will use the membrane cargo containment technology developed by Gaz de France's affiliate Gaztransport & Technigaz and will be managed by another Gaz de France affiliate, Gazocean. It will be used to transport LNG from Egypt in connction with a contract under which Gaz de France will buy 4.8 billion cubic meters of LNG annually from Egypt, starting in 2005. This is Gaz de France's second LNG ship to be ordered within 18 months from Chantiers de l'Atlantique. Like the earlier ship, this vessel will have diesel electric propulsion. No price for the ship has been disclosed. However, the Gaz de France announcement comes within weeks of a decison by the European Commission that the "temporary defensive mechanism," allowing shipbuilding subsidies of up to 6%, could be extended to LNG ships. Tell a friend: