China on Friday delivered its first large LNG carrier with a cargo containment system fully fitted with domestically made ultra-low-temperature valves, marking a key breakthrough in the localization of critical LNG shipbuilding equipment and highlighting the country's growing strength in high-end vessel manufacturing.

The 174,000-cubic-meter vessel was built by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Co, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), CCTV News reported on Friday.

Its delivery shows that China's LNG carrier sector is moving from breakthroughs in hull construction and ship design toward stronger domestic support across materials, core systems and supporting equipment, the report noted.

Named Puteri Johor, the vessel is based on Hudong-Zhonghua's self-developed fifth-generation Changheng LNG carrier design. Supported by advanced hydrodynamic optimization, the ship is designed for higher sailing efficiency, lower energy consumption, greater cargo capacity and strong compatibility with major global shipping routes, according to a Beijing Daily report.

The vessel is 299 meters long and 46.4 meters wide, with a deck area roughly equal to three standard football fields. Fitted with four liquid cargo tanks, it can carry 174,000 cubic meters of LNG in a single voyage.

After regasification, that volume can meet the monthly gas demand of about 3.3 million households, a sign of the vessel's advanced design and world-class technical performance, according to CCTV News.

"The ship has reached a world-leading level in energy efficiency, cargo capacity and reliability. It is equipped with a top-tier cargo containment system and a dual-fuel low-speed propulsion system," Wu An, assistant to the head of Hudong-Zhonghua's marketing department and chief designer of the LNG carrier, was quoted by the report as saying.

Industry experts said the vessel's 0.5 percent increase in carrying capacity should not be underestimated, as it allows each voyage to transport nearly 900 cubic meters, or about 500 tons, more LNG, helping further lower shipping costs.

Another key highlight is the cargo containment system, the core system that keeps LNG at below minus 163 C. For the first time, the full range of ultra-low-temperature valves used in the system has been domestically made, CCTV News reported.

After delivery, Puteri Johor is expected to enter service on the Malaysia-China route.

In April 2008, Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Co delivered China's first domestically built large LNG carrier, filling a gap in the country's independent LNG carrier construction. But at the time, less than 30 percent of the ship was domestically made.

Now, the localization rate of China's large LNG carriers has climbed to 80 percent, while the cargo containment system - once the hardest core component to localize - has achieved full domestic supporting capability, according to CCTV News.

The latest delivery also came as China's shipbuilding industry continued to consolidate its global lead. In the first quarter of 2026, China ranked first worldwide in completed output, new orders and orders on hand, with new orders nearly tripling from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Li Yanqing, vice president of the China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry, said in a separate report on cnr.cn that the growth momentum reflected the steady and sound development of China's shipbuilding sector.

The strong order growth also shows that global customers have greater trust in the stability and certainty offered by Chinese shipbuilders - an advantage that is especially valuable in a volatile market environment, Li said.