DNV: August marks no new alternative-fuel vessel orders for first time since since 2018

Latest data from classification society DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insight (AFI) platform showed no new alternative-fuelled vessel orders were registered in August, compared to 28 new orders in July. 

Kristian Hammer, Product Manager AFI and Senior Consultant at DNV, said new order activity for alternative-fuelled vessels has been slow over the recent summer months, particularly in August when zero new orders were registered for the first time since 2018.

“Nonetheless, two LNG bunkering vessels were added in August, further bolstering this growing fleet,” he said in a social media post. 

“So far this year, 178 alternative-fuelled vessels have been added to the orderbook, a significant reduction (49%) on the 350 ordered in same period in 2024, albeit against the backdrop of a much slower overall newbuild market in 2025, compared to 2024.”

Hammer added that the AFI platform featured prominently in this year’s Maritime Forecast to 2050 report, which was officially launched at London International Shipping Week.

“As shown in the report, the alternative-fuelled fleet is set to almost double by 2028 and will be able to burn around 50 Mtoe per annum of non-oil fuels by 2030,” he said. 

“This represents significant progress over a relatively short period. With LNG dominating the orderbook in recent months and years, the majority of this capability (44 Mtoe) is expected to come from the LNG-fuelled fleet, with methanol-fuelled vessels (6 Mtoe) next.”

“As the report points out, this shifts the spotlight to fuel producers. Total supply of low-GHG fuels is expected to be between 70 and 100 Mtoe per year by 2030, and shipping will need around 25 Mtoe of this, i.e. up to a third, to reach the IMO’s first big decarbonization milestone – a 20% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030.”

Photo credit: DNV
Published: 18 September, 2025