## 1 Introduction  
In recent decades, man-made environmental damage has come to the fore, leading to a greater emphasis on the responsible and sustainable use of our planet's resources. The rapid growth of the world's population, heavy reliance on fossil fuels, resource exploitation, industrial expansion, and globalization have led to significant pollution and climate change. The effects of these activities are becoming increasingly clear and widespread, and the risks of climate change are already being felt in many regions of the world. This has raised awareness of the need to adapt to climate change and efforts to reduce pollution. As a result, the use of green energy sources that minimize the negative impact on the environment is increasingly being promoted. In this context, liquefied natural gas (LNG) is becoming increasingly important in the global energy landscape, particularly due to its versatility in the transportation sector. A 2018 study predicts that LNG will account for more than 60% of global gas trade by 2040 [1]. LNG is mainly transported by ship, although a significant proportion is still transported via pipelines. It is well known that transportation by ship costs much less than transportation via onshore infrastructure. The main advantage is that it can be delivered to locations that do not need to be in close geographical proximity to the customer and do not require extensive and expensive transportation facilities [2]. Thanks to innovations in LNG transportation and LNG technology, trade is no longer limited by pipeline infrastructure, allowing natural gas to be delivered to regions where pipelines are unavailable or impractical [3]. This makes the transportation of LNG by sea particularly advantageous, as exporters can deliver the gas to any location with a liquefaction facility, while importers can source the gas from any region with such facilities [4]. In addition, LNG transported by sea is generally purer than pipeline gas. The liquefaction process removes most impurities, a step that is not normally required for pipeline transportation [5]. Since the early 2000s, global LNG production capacities have increased more than eightfold [6]. This growth has been accompanied by a significant increase in global gas trade, which rose from 100 million tons in 2000 to 1029.9 million tons in 2024, as various studies show [7; 8; 9]. According to [PERSON] et al., the LNG sector now accounts for more than 30% of the global energy market [10]. Considering the continuous growth of the world population, [PERSON] et al. assume that the demand for LNG will continue to rise, leading to a further increase in both production capacity and consumption [11]. In addition, [PERSON] et al. predict that technological advances will reduce investment costs for LNG projects, while improvements in global infrastructure will increase market liquidity and business opportunities in the LNG sector [12]. In a similar study on the Russian Yamal LNG project, [PERSON] et al. predict that the development of the Northern Sea Route and Arctic regions will contribute to greater LNG trade volumes while increasing the Russian LNG production capacity [13]. LNG is increasingly seen as an alternative fuel for various types of transportation [14; 15; 16]. With the introduction of stricter environmental regulations in the shipping industry, LNG has gained attention as a fuel, and numerous studies have highlighted its benefits [17; 18; 19; 20]. Although LNG offers certain advantages compared to other fossil fuels, its use still results in significant CO\({}_{2}\) emissions, an issue that has been studied by [PERSON] et al. and [PERSON] et al. [21; 22; 23]; these authors conducted assessments on current and future air emissions in the shipping sector, similar to the analyses of [PERSON] et al. and [PERSON] et al. [24; 25]. Collecting data on the LNG market and trade is essential for evaluating company performance and understanding market dynamics.