TOKYO-Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President & CEO: Takeshi Hashimoto) today announced that on July 3, its group MOL Coastal Shipping, Ltd. (President: Hiroshi Kobayashi; Head Office: Minato-ku, Tokyo) held a naming and launching ceremony for a newbuilding coastal tanker, jointly owned by MOL Coastal Shipping, Tabuchi Kaiun Co., Ltd., and Niihama Kaiun Kabushiki Kaisha, at Kanasashi Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. of Murakami Hide Shipbuilding Group. The vessel was named the Daiichi Meta Maru, and will transport methanol cargo for Mitsubishi Corporation.
First domestic coastal vessel
The Daiichi Meta Maru is Japan’s first domestic coastal vessel to use environmentally friendly methanol (Note) fuel, and is a state-of-the-art vessel equipped with the most advanced energy-saving devices and operational support and automated cargo handling systems. The vessel is scheduled for delivery from Kanasashi Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. in December.
The MOL Group will continue working to reduce the environmental impact of marine transport in cooperation with joint shipowners.
Compared to heavy oil, which is currently the primary marine fuel oil, the use of methanol fuel can reduce SOx emissions by up to 99%, particulate matter (PM) emissions by up to 95%, NOx emissions by up to 80%, and CO2 emissions by up to 15%. Methanol fuel is already in practical use and can be supplied and bunkered at about 130 major ports worldwide.
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Source: Mol
