Golar LNG Limited announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell the company that owns and operates the LNG Carrier Golar Maria, together with its time-charter, to Golar LNG Partners L.P. ("Golar LNG Partners") for a price of USD215 million. The transaction is subject to the satisfaction of certain closing conditions.

Chios Navigation has acquired bulk carrier "Archon" (dwt 75.121 blt 2001), according to Fearnleys Weekly. The reported price is approximately USD 12.2 million. In the newbuilding front, two Norwegian Owners have contracted bulk carriers with Japanese yards over the last week, the report notes.

Shell US Gas & Power LLC (Shell), a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc, and Southern Liquefaction Company, LLC, a Kinder Morgan company and unit of El Paso Pipeline Partners, L.P. (NYSE: EPB), announced their intent to form a limited liability company to develop a natural gas liquefaction plant in two phases at Southern LNG Company, LLC’s (Southern LNG) existing Elba Island LNG Terminal, near Savannah, Ga.

Fearnleys Weekly reports 14 newbuildings over the last week. Hoegh Autoliners has returned to Xiamen Shipbuilding for an order of three firm 8,500 PCTCs with delivery slated for 2015. Nordana has returned to Taizhou Sanfu for a new series of four 12,100dwt Heavy Lift Multipurpose vessels.

LNG freight rates strengthened in December as winter demand kicked in, but the market has not yet escaped the agonies of the second half of 2012. Drewry’s LNG Freight Index might have gained 20% in December, but short-term rates were still 4% below what they were in December 2011.

Evergas have placed an order at Qidong Dajiang Shipbuilding for four 30,000 cbm LNG/Ethylene/LPG vessels scheduled for delivery in 2015 and constructed in cooperation with Wärtsila. The company also agreed long term charters for the transportation of ethane into Europe.

Rates to ship liquefied natural gas are dropping for the first time in four years amid a diminishing scarcity of the carriers transporting the fuel, a bullish sign for investors in the biggest owners of the vessels.

The gap between liquefied natural gas prices in Asia and the Atlantic will keep trades between the regions profitable through the Northern Hemisphere spring, boosting shipping rates, according to DNB Markets.

Golar confirmed that the BC LNG Export Co-Operative, LLC has finalized contract awards for both feed gas supply and LNG purchase and off-take for train #1 of the Douglas Channel LNG Project ("DC Project").