China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited (CSSC) announced Wednesday that it has signed a liquified natural gas (LNG) carrier deal worth over 20 billion yuan (about 2.82 billion U.S. dollars) with Qatar Petroleum, a record export volume for China's shipping industry.

The two companies will work together in fields such as energy transportation, equipment building and global services, and Qatar Petroleum will order large LNG carriers from Hudong-Zhonghua, one of the major subsidiaries of the CSSC, according to the agreement.

The CSSC said Qatar Petroleum will purchase Hudong-Zhonghua's latest self-developed 174,000-cubic-meter LNG carriers, designed with world-class performance in terms of energy consumption, environmental friendliness and reliability.

Hudong-Zhonghua will also reserve berths for follow-up orders, said the CSSC.

The deal marks a global recognition of Chinese manufacturers and will support the further upgrading of China's high-end maritime equipment manufacturing, said CSSC Chairman Lei Fanpei.