Last year SVEZA Group increased its sales of plywood intended for the production of insulation panels used in the construction of facilities for the transportation and storage of liquefied natural gas (LNG). SVEZA mill in St. Petersburg, which produces the specialty product, exceeded the 2019 supply in this segment by 50%. This year the company plans to increase its share in this market up to 25% and to exceed 30% in the future.
Last year the volume of the supply of SVEZA “gas plywood” increased significantly – the company shipped almost 12 thousand m3 of this type of product, which is 50% more than last year. The total capacity of the global plywood market for LNG transportation and storage is estimated at approximately 100 thousand m3 per year.
Thanks to the global demand for a green economy, the demand for LNG, as one of the most environmentally friendly fuels, is steadily growing. LNG storage facilities are being built all over the world, and the prices for tanker chartering are also rising, and, accordingly, the demand for new tankers is increasing, — says SVEZA Marketing Director Svyatoslav Sarson. The four largest shipyards specializing in the construction of such facilities are located in South Korea and China, they are loaded with orders for several years ahead. At the same time, SVEZA is the only supplier of “gas plywood” to the Chinese shipyard.
Last year the supply of the specialty plywood to the Russian market for the implementation of key projects also began. This product will be used for the construction of insulation panels in gas carriers and floating LNG storage facilities.
SVEZA is the only manufacturer in Russia and one of the four manufacturers in the world that is certified under all three GTT systems (engineering company, an expert in the field of sealing systems using low-temperature membranes used for the transportation and storage of LNG). The company regularly passes audits of GTT, shipyards, and LNG panel manufacturers, has valid contracts with all players in this market and certificates of the largest classification organizations.
“The growth would have been even stronger, but due to the pandemic, deadlines of several projects have been postponed. However, even despite the corona-crisis, we exceeded the volumes of 2019. Now several more batches of gas plywood are in the process of production. And the prospects for the industry are the most optimistic — many ocean vessels are built with the use of LNG, which means that the demand for this fuel, as well as for new tankers and storage facilities, will only increase,” — Svyatoslav Sarson predicts.
In his estimation, SVEZA already occupies a worthy place of more than 15% in the “gas plywood” market. In 2021 the company plans to increase its share to about 25% and up to 30% in the next two years.