South Korea owner Pan Ocean has confirmed an order at Samsung Heavy Industries for the construction of a large LNG carrier.

The company announced the plan to invest in an LNG carrier in December and the vessel is likely to serve a charter deal with Portuguese company Galp Energia.

The ship, which will cost KRW199bn ($183m), will be delivered in 2023.

Last month, Pan Ocean also ordered two 174,000 cum LNG carriers at Hyundai Heavy Industries for a charter deal with Shell.

Pan Ocean, which is primarily involved in the dry bulk business, currently has one 153,600 cum LNG carrier in its fleet.