ABSTRACT
The current world fleet of LNG carriers is comparably small in relation to other ship types, but it has been increasing steadily in recent years. The present LNG fleet contains more than 183 ships with a substantial number of ships under construction or ordered. Most of these ships are of large size with an average size of almost 120,000 cubic meters while the ordered ships present even higher average (∼150,000 cubic meters). With the increase on LNG demand several practical solutions have been proposed in order to optimize the logistic chain flow and, at the same time, lower the costs and reduce the risks associated with the transport, process and storage of LNG. In this view the development of the FLNG platforms are considered today a practical and viable solution to some of the above challenges, since these structures are more than one ship, as they extract, process and store natural gas, i.e., acts as a floating refinery.
