Golar LNG Greenlights Fourth FLNG, Banking on the Earliest Available Capacity
A repeat-mark II order, a Seatrium LOI, and an option network set the company up to lead the FLNG-as-a-service race.
GLNG · Earnings Call · 2026-08-13
The Fourth Unit: A Replicable Growth Machine
Overnight, we signed our fourth FLNG unit, which is another Mark II FLNG to be constructed at CIMC Raffles Shipyard in China. That's the same shipyard already constructing our existing Mark II FLNG on order. The fourth FLNG order will deliver within 2029 and be the earliest available FLNG capacity globally.
Today Golar LNG made a decisive pivot from "watching" to "acting." The company announced it has signed a firm order for its fourth FLNG unit, another Mark II to be built at CIMC Raffles, alongside an option for a third Mark II and a letter of intent with Seatrium for future new-builds or conversions. The order cements Golar's position as the market-leading owner of FLNG capacity while extending a growth runway that had previously been gated by shipyard and long-lead availability. Management was explicit about the timing: delivery is targeted in 2029, which the company describes as the "earliest available FLNG capacity globally."
The order was not a speculative gamble. As Karl Staubo explained in his prepared remarks, it was placed "on the back of strong interest from prospective charters as well as Golar's stated policy of adding additional FLNG capacity once the existing fleet has secured long-term charter commitments" (“on the back of strong interest from prospective charters” — Karl Staubo, CEO · 2026-08-13). With the existing fleet now largely contracted — Hilli finished its Cameroon charter, Gimi is operating above nameplate, and the FLNG Esperanza remains on schedule — the company now boasts a $17 billion EBITDA backlog before commodity upside. The FLNG order adds 41% to controlled liquefaction capacity, lifting the fleet from 8.6 to more than 12 million tonnes per annum.
The growth architecture extends well beyond unit #4. The LOI with Seatrium reserves slots for either a Mark I or Mark II design, and the CIMC option covers an incremental Mark II. Management's sequencing rule remains strict: only one open vessel at a time. "We remain with our guidance in the 5 to 6x CapEx to EBITDA sort of range" (“5 to 6x CapEx to EBITDA” — Karl Staubo, CEO · 2026-08-13), Karl confirmed in the Q&A. That discipline, combined with the option network, gives Golar a credible path to a fleet of seven units — a scale no other pure-play FLNG service provider can match.
The Contract Backbone and Commodity Leverage
The fourth unit's economics are buttressed by the contract structures already in place. Gimi continued to overproduce, delivering 15% above contracted capacity in Q2, while Hilli completed its 8-year Cameroon charter with a perfect 100% economic uptime record. These operational results underpin the contracted earnings base, which management now sees growing to more than $1.2 billion annually by 2030 with unit #4 contracted. The long term charter runway stretches through 2045, and the commodity-linked component provides meaningful upside leverage. Hilli alone generated commodity linked earnings of $37 million in Q2, up from $10 million the prior quarter. CFO Eduardo Maranhao quantified the potential for the upcoming Argentina operations: "Based on current and forward pricing, we estimate that this movement could increase the value of our commodity exposure by up to $500 million per year during the first 3 years of SESA operations" (“increase... by up to $500 million per year” — Eduardo Maranhao, CFO · 2026-08-13). Every $1 per million BTU above the $8 threshold could generate up to $100 million of incremental annual EBITDA.
Financing the Growth Curve
Financing the fourth unit will be a balancing act, but the balance sheet has built-in capacity. Cash stood at $900 million at quarter-end, plus a new undrawn $600 million revolving credit facility. Management highlighted that optimizing Hilli's financing and locking long-term financing for asset level financing could release approximately $2.3 billion of incremental liquidity. The company has proven it can execute asset-level debt — the Gimi deal closed at 5.5x leverage. The fourth unit's CapEx budget rose to ~$2.45 billion, a 10% increase over the Esperanza, driven largely by inflation in long lead equipment — turbines, heat exchangers, and gas engines that are also being chased by Big Tech company data centers and global shipbuilding. As Karl noted in the Q1 call, "This is why we feel strongly about securing long-lead items to ensure that we can deliver an FLNG in 36 months" (“deliver an FLNG in 36 months” — Karl Staubo, CEO · 2026-05-20). The option packages secured at negligible incremental cost help Golar lock in those long-leads before competitors even order steel.
The strategic review remains an open thread, and today's announcement sharpens the narrative. As Chairman Tor Trøim put it in February: "I think any kind of strategic discussion will benefit from building -- continue to building the company like we do" (“continue to building the company like we do” — Tor Trøim, Chairman · 2026-02-25). The fourth order is evidence that Board and management are running the business forward, not waiting for a sale.
What changed at Golar this quarter is not merely a new order — it's a shift from opportunistic growth to an industrial, replicable growth engine. With four units committed or contracted, an option ladder, and a clear financing path, Golar has effectively de-risked the "next" unit while keeping the balance sheet flexible. The market's reaction will likely hinge on the speed of charter signings for unit #4, but the underlying thesis — FLNG as the cheapest and fastest way to diversify LNG supply — has been reinforced by every data point on this call.