[SINGAPORE] Chinese shipyards are aiming to take some US$10 billion in orders for new LNG tankers over the rest of the decade, part of a plan to restructure the country's ailing shipbuilding sector and secure China's energy supply chain.

The push to build its own natural gas delivery vessels will boost China's capability in high-tech ships and pose a challenge to South Korean and Japanese shipyards that have been the main suppliers of large gas tankers for 30 years.

Up to 50 liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers, or more than 20 per cent of the 225 LNG vessels expected to be added worldwide by the end of 2020, are set to be built in China to deliver gas to its ports, according to estimates from ship safety agency the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS).