Russia’s Sovcomflot inks $149m loan for LNG carrier

Russian shipping company Sovcomflot has signed a $149 million credit facility to finance the construction of a 174,000-cbm Atlanticmax LNG carrier.

Image courtesy of Sovcomflot

The credit facility, for up to 10 years, has been agreed with a consortium of three international banks, comprising ING Bank, KfW IPEX-Bank and Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Sovconflot said on Wednesday.

The vessel will feature a slow-speed tri-fuel X-DF diesel engine and gas boil-off partial liquefaction system.

The LNG carrier will operate on long-term charters with France’s Total.

“The project facility benefits from a limited-recourse structure and a favourable long-term tenor, as well as competitive pricing, reflecting the robustness and the high credit quality of the deal structure, underpinned by the stability of the charter hire revenue stream and cash flows,” the statement said.

This is the fifth international debt financing for Sovcomflot this year.