LNG

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, the Japanese shipping company known as NYK Line, plans to order 12 new LNG-powered vehicle carriers for $100 billion yen ($911 million) from two shipyards in Japan.

NYK Line will order six car-carriers, called Pure Car Carriers, each from Nilaijima Shipyard and Nippon Shipyard, a joint venture between Imabari Shipyard and Japan Ocean Union.

The carriers will each have a loading capacity of around 7,000 vehicles.This is the biggest LNG fuel ship order in Japan, according to Japan's Nikkei news.

A statement given to Japan’s Nikkei said there were only about 10 vehicle carriers powered by LNG, out of about 700 globally.

NYK’s order is the biggest received by Japan shipyards for LNG-powered vessels.

The use of LNG for the ships delivering cars is part of an effort by the auto industry to try to reduce emissions in their supply chains.

Such ships are expected to produce 25 percent fewer carbon-dioxide emissions compared with current transporters fuelled by heavy fuel oil or diesel.

Pure Car Carriers, as they are known, are already required to be powered by LNG as a bidding requirement for companies wishing to work with Germany's Volkswagen.

The Japanese report said Japan's Toyota Motor began to demand Co2 emission reductions from major suppliers that it has direct transactions with, and is expected to make similar requests of its maritime transportation companies in the future.

Honda Motor is also expected to try to cut emissions in its supply chain.

NYK is the biggest owner of such PCC vessels and is making a large shipbuilding investment to guard its market share.

NYK Line had 110 PCCs in operation as of April 2021. Only one of them is fuelled by LNG.

By the end of 2028, the company aims to have 20 LNG-fuelled transporters.