| dc.description.abstract | The carriage of LNG by vessel has become a significant business among the shipping industry. Challenging economic situations as the currently oil crisis or disagreements between gas producers and its neighboring countries have promoted an essential investment in this sector. In this sense, this thesis aims to analyze the legal differences and similarities between two of the most important exporters of LNG by ship: Norway and US. The topic is of interest for the following reasons: Firstly, production and carriage of LNG have increased making this natural resource an important alternative to oil. Secondly, both US and Norway are among the main producers of LNG. For example, the American Petroleum Institute informed on their report about Liquefied Natural Gas Exports – America s Opportunity and Advantage of May 2015, that LNG exports could contribute as much as $10 to $31 billion per state to the economies of natural gas-producing by 2035. According to the information given by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, Norway is contemplated as the third largest gas exporter in the world. Almost all Norwegian gas is sold on the European market. Thirdly, when it comes to the law regulating these matters, there is such a difference between the procedure used to solve legal questions among these countries and its control over the LNG tankers. The thesis will be structured as follows: The first and the second part will give an introduction to the carriage of LNG by vessel. In addition, it will be a discussion about the LNG market: historical perspective, the role of international institutions concerning LNG vessels (NGO s, Classification Societies) and also an analysis about the type of LNG contracts of carriage, paying attention on the clauses used for the charter party ShellLNGTime1. The third and the fourth parts will expose the regulation of the transport of LNG in each jurisdiction, both Norwegian and American. The fifth part would be the core of the thesis, as it will analyze the similarities and differences between the two systems. At the end of the thesis I will give a conclusion. | eng |