LaycanDeskLPG parcels into South Asia: pressurised and semi-refrigerated gas carriers
Propane and butane parcels of 2,000 to 23,000 tonnes on pressurised, semi-refrigerated and mid-size gas carriers into Port Qasim, the Indian west coast, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh from Oman and the US Gulf. Freight for LPG into Pakistan, India's west coast, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh: 2,000 to 5,000 tonne parcels on fully pressurised ships from Sohar, Duqm and Salalah into the SSGC and Engro Vopak berths at Port Qasim and into Hambantota and Kerawalapitiya, 10,000 to 12,000 tonne semi-refrigerated lots, and fully refrigerated cargoes of about 23,000 tonnes from the US Gulf, with the Kutubdia ship-to-ship lightering model for Bangladesh, priced on Saudi CP plus a premium, and the loading terminal named before any ship is put forward.
Gas carriers come in three families and the receiving terminal picks the one that fits. Fully pressurised ships of about 3,500 to 6,000 cubic metres carry LPG at ambient temperature in cylindrical or spherical tanks at up to 17.5 bar; semi-refrigerated ships of 5,000 to 20,000 cubic metres cool and pressurise the cargo together; fully refrigerated mid-size carriers of 20,000 to 40,000 cubic metres and the 70,000-plus cubic metre VLGCs carry it cold at near-atmospheric pressure and need refrigerated shore tanks or a lightering fleet. Pakistan shows the whole range at one port. Port Qasim has two LPG import terminals, SSGC LPG's open-access berth and Engro Vopak, with about 13,000 tonnes of combined storage; the port took 3,500, 11,000 and 12,000 tonne parcels in March 2026 and a fully refrigerated 23,000 tonne US cargo at Engro Vopak in September, on a 180 metre ship against a 185 metre length limit. Bangladesh works the other way round: a VLGC or mid-size carrier of up to about 44,000 tonnes anchors at Kutubdia and discharges ship-to-ship into pressurised lighters of 1,000 to 3,500 tonnes, which carry the cargo to the Karnaphuli, Sitakunda and Mongla terminals. Sri Lanka has the LAUGFS terminal at Hambantota with 30,000 tonnes of storage that receives anything from a small pressurised ship to a VLGC, and Litro's 8,000 tonne terminal at Kerawalapitiya that takes about seven cargoes a month. India's west coast is a term and tender market served by VLGCs into Mundra and Kandla, with Aegis Vopak storage at Kandla, Pipavav and Mangalore.
The open-coast origins are Oman and the Atlantic. OQ's Salalah plant makes about 300,000 tonnes a year and loads at its own jetty in the Port of Salalah, whose liquid berths have 18 metres of water; Duqm's refinery LPG loads at the OTTCO export terminal on berths dredged to 18 metres; Sohar's surplus is small and irregular because the Liwa Plastics cracker consumes most of it. Oman's exportable total is on the order of 25,000 to 50,000 tonnes a month and is already contested, so the regular Omani trade into Karachi and Chattogram is the 3,000 to 5,000 tonne pressurised shuttle, and refrigerated volume comes from the US Gulf at 40 to 45 days' steaming. Send us the product and propane-butane split, quantity, the loading terminal and berth, whether loading is alongside or ship-to-ship, the receiving terminal with its confirmed throughput slot, laycan, commission and the charterer's name; the price basis is Saudi CP of the loading month plus a premium in dollars a tonne, and the LC is usually opened before the laycan is fixed. Pressurised parcels go to owners of 3,500 to 11,000 cubic metre ships trading the Arabian Sea; semi-refrigerated and mid-size stems go to the operators of that class. Origin is proved by the producer's bill of lading, statement of facts and quantity certificate from the named terminal and a clean AIS track for the loading call; a certificate of origin alone does not do it. Every counterparty is screened before an owner sees the stem and the ship is checked against the designated lists before she is named.
How it ships
- Fully pressurised 3,500–6,000 m³, up to 17.5 bar, ambient temperature
- Semi-refrigerated 5,000–20,000 m³
- Fully refrigerated MGC 20,000–40,000 m³ and VLGC 70,000 m³ and above
- Alongside at refrigerated or pressurised terminals, or STS to lighters
- Priced on Saudi CP plus a premium; LC before laycan
- Producer's B/L, SOF and Q&Q from the named load terminal
Load areas
- Oman: Salalah (OQ LPG jetty), Duqm (OTTCO terminal), Sohar when surplus
- US Gulf (Houston, Freeport), 40–45 days to South Asia
- Algeria (Bethioua, 3 million t/yr propane and butane), Atlantic arbitrage
- Other Atlantic and East African loadings on a case basis
Discharge areas
- Pakistan: Port Qasim (SSGC LPG, Engro Vopak; LOA 185 m)
- India west coast: Mundra, Kandla, Pipavav, Mangalore
- Sri Lanka: Hambantota (LAUGFS, 30,000 t), Kerawalapitiya (Litro, 8,000 t)
- Bangladesh: Kutubdia STS to lighters; Karnaphuli, Sitakunda, Mongla
Ships that carry it
The cargo itself, on Commbril
Questions charterers and owners ask
What size LPG ship can discharge at Port Qasim?
Both terminals take pressurised coasters of 3,000 to 5,000 tonnes and semi-refrigerated ships of 10,000 to 12,000 tonnes; Engro Vopak's berth is rated for ships up to 75,000 dwt and took a fully refrigerated 23,000 tonne cargo on a 180 metre ship in September 2026 against a 185 metre length limit. The SSGC berth is open-access, so other marketers import through it. Combined LPG storage at the port is about 13,000 tonnes, which caps how large a parcel can be taken in one go.
How do VLGC cargoes get into Bangladesh?
By ship-to-ship transfer at Kutubdia. The mother ship, up to about 44,000 tonnes, anchors offshore and discharges into pressurised lighters of 1,000 to 3,500 tonnes, which deliver to the Karnaphuli, Sitakunda and Mongla terminals. A buyer without lighters needs the seller to bring them or to deliver 5,000 to 7,000 tonne parcels direct.
Why do you insist on the loading terminal being named?
Because origin is proved at the berth, not on the certificate. A genuine Omani cargo shows the producer's bill of lading, statement of facts and quantity and quality certificate from Salalah, Duqm or Sohar and an AIS track that matches them; a cargo loaded ship-to-ship at an anchorage with an Omani certificate of origin does not. Owners vet on the terminal nomination, and so do we.
What do you need from an owner of a small gas carrier?
Name and IMO number, cubic capacity and type (pressurised, semi-ref or fully refrigerated), design pressure and minimum temperature, LOA and draft, last three cargoes, open port and dates. Pressurised ships of 3,500 to 11,000 cubic metres opening between Salalah and Colombo are the positions the Karachi and Chattogram shuttles need most often.