Last Friday, Lech Kaczyński, the first methane carrier from the planned 8-vessel fleet of Orlen, called at the LNG terminal in Świnoujście. 70,000 tons of liquefied natural gas arrived from the US on board. This is as much as all households in Poland consume for 7 days.

During Saturday's conference, the president of PKN Orlen, Daniel Obajtek, spoke about creating a strong multi-energy concern and the need to diversify supplies. – In today's world, what counts are large corporations that make huge investments – he stressed. – We broke free from the Russian shoe and gave security to the Poles – he added.

Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin, who was present at the ceremony, called this event a breakthrough for the security and energy sovereignty of the country. – Not one percent of oil and gas comes to us from Russia – he assured.

The construction of its own fleet is an integral element of Orlen's investment strategy. Over the last 7 years, the company has allocated PLN 320 billion to projects related to the extraction and logistics of fuels. Obajtek announced that the concern will invest another PLN 70 billion in increasing production in Norway, Poland, Canada and Pakistan.

The company's potential to conduct global negotiations and undertake such gigantic investments has been strengthened by the merger of Orlen, Lotos and PGNiG.

The almost 300-meter gas carrier is the first of eight ordered by PGNiG Supply & Trading from the Orlen Group. It was built at the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea and officially christened there last December. The ship was registered under the French flag. Its home port is Marseille.

Lech Kaczyński reaches a service speed of 19.5 knots and a maximum speed of 21.5 knots. He left for Poland from the USA on February 19. In an interview with us, Captain Vincent Prudor admitted that the journey was a demanding challenge for the entire crew. – When transporting such a load, specialist preparation and extensive experience are necessary. he emphasized. – It's also a new ship, a new navigation system and new people, you have to keep that in mind. There are many risks involved in the implementation of such a task, but we approached it with full professionalism, thanks to which we reached our destination safely. This is our success – he added.

Grażyna Gęsicka – another of Orlen's gas carriers – is currently undergoing sea trials off the coast of South Korea and is scheduled to enter service later this year, most likely in the middle of the year.

The next two ships will appear in 2024, and the last four in 2025. Then the Orlen Group will have a full fleet at its disposal. Each of the units will carry 174 thousand cubic meters of LNG, i.e. approx. 70,000 tons of liquefied gas, which in turn corresponds to approx. 100 million cubic meters in gaseous state. The charter agreements were concluded with the Norwegian company Knutsen OAS Shipping, specializing in technical and commercial services for ships used to transport LNG.

The duration of the charter is 10 years.