Shipping accounts for 10 to 30 per cent of the delivered value of LNG, depending on the distance from the reserves to the market, due to the relatively high cost of manufacturing LNG tankers. Tankers currently cost $150 to $160 million for a 138,000 cubic metre vessel.

LNG tankers are rarely built on speculation but rather vessels are built for dedicated routes for specific projects. Only eight shipyards in the world currently build LNG tankers - three in Japan, three in Korea and two in Europe. India, China and Poland are planning to develop LNG construction capabilities in their shipyards in the future. Currently, there are 252 tankers in the LNG fleet, with another 138 ships under construction.