Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Chubu Electric Power, Toyota Tsusho, and Nippon Yusen KK said on Friday that their joint venture has placed an order for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering vessel with Kawasaki Heavy Industries.
The vessel, which is scheduled to be delivered around September-December 2020, will be the first LNG bunkering vessel to be operated in Japan, the companies said in a statement.
The companies plan to start supplying LNG to vessels as fuel in the Chubu region in central Japan.
LNG is seen as an alternative to bunker fuel oil for shipping lines facing a 2020 deadline to meet new international standards on sulphur emissions.
Reporting by Osamu Tsukimori