Japan's First LNG-Fueled Ferries Ordered

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, has signed a contract with Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) to build two LNG-fueled ferries, the first such project in Japan. 

The vessels will be built at the Shimonoseki Shipyard & Machinery Works, with successive completion and handover scheduled for the end of 2022 to early 2023. Ferry Sunflower Limited based in Oita, will operate the ferries on its Osaka-Beppu route.

The ferries will have dual-fuel engines and be about 199.9 meters long and 28.0 meters wide, with gross tonnage of approximately 17,300 tonnes. They will have capacity for 763 passengers and around 136 13-meter trucks and 100 passenger cars. 

Earlier this month, Kyushu Electric Power reached long-term transport agreements to deploy the world’s first LNG-fueled large coal carriers with MOL and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK).

MOL's 235-meter, 950,000dwt vessel is being built by Namura Shipbuilding and is expected to enter service in June 2023. Earlier this month, MOL announced it has signed its first green loan, the proceeds of which will be used to partially finance the construction of the world's largest LNG bunkering vessel.