September delivered another bumper month of activity on DNVs Alternative Fuels Insight (AFI) platform, capping off the strongest quarter for alternative-fuelled vessel ordering since the third quarter of 2024.
AFI recorded 69 new alternative-fuelled vessel orders during the month, bringing the third quarter total to 168 orders. Year to date, orders stand at 311 vessels, 53% higher than the same point in 2025.
LNG remains the dominant story, with 200 orders recorded so far this year, up 52% year-on-year. Container vessels account for 55% of those orders, followed by car carriers at 32%.
“What’s particularly interesting to me, however, is the growing diversity were seeing alongside LNGs continued strength,” says Jason Stefanatos, the Global Decarbonization Director at DNV, regarding the latest data from DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insight (AFI) platform. “September included 12 ethanol-fuelled vessel orders, all in the bulk carrier segment, highlighting how alternative-fuel activity is spreading across different vessel types and fuel pathways, while indicating Ethanol as an emerging pathway.”
In accordance with Stefanatos, the latest figures reinforce the view that the industry’s transition is unlikely to follow a single route.
While LNG continues to dominate alternative-fuel vessel orders, a growing diversity of fuel adoption across different vessel types and fuel pathways is emerging, with new ethanol and LPG vessel orders.
LNG continues to deliver scale, he says, while other fuels are increasingly finding their place in segments where different operational and commercial considerations apply.
Stefanatos says the challenge now is ensuring that progress in vessel ordering is matched by progress in fuel supply and infrastructure.
