GE Marine announced on Tuesday that it will develop a design for a gas-turbine-powered carrier for liquefied natural gas in cooperation with China's Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co and Lloyd's Register, a British maritime risk-management concern.

The new LNG carrier, with a capacity of 170,000 cubic meters, will provide low life-cycle cost, high environmental performance and flexible design, said Brien Bolsinger, vice-president of marine operations for GE Marine.

"By employing GE gas turbines, this LNG carrier design will address increasingly stringent worldwide environmental regulations," he said.

Design will commence after the shipyard receives orders, Bolsinger said.

Yu Fengping, president of DSIC, the largest shipbuilding company in the country, said China requires more LNG carriers over the next 10 years to meet its growing energy needs.

"The shipyard is committed to developing the next generation of LNG carriers using new technology," Yu said.

Bolsinger said GE's hookup with Chinese shipyards will help upgrade that industry and increase its market share.

China had $48 billion worth of orders for container ships and other vessels in 2010, accounting for 38 per cent of the global market. But LNG orders, amounting to $25 billion were just 15 percent of the world's total, Bolsinger said.

With a market share improvement of only 1 percent in the high-value, high-tech sector encompassing offshore and LNG carriers, China would add $40 billion of accumulated revenue growth through 2020, said Mark Hutchinson, president and CEO of GE China.

If the industry could achieve a 5 percent market share improvement in the sector, it would add $200 billion through 2020, he said.

"As a partner of choice in China, our technology and innovation aligns with the industry shift to high-value vessels that operate efficiently, reduce emissions and meet critical environmental regulations," Hutchinson said.