Japanese shipbuilder Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co. has concluded a contract with compatriot shipowner Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) to build two LNG-fueled ferries, the first such project in Japan.
The contract is being finalized a month after MOL expressed its intention to order the ships.
Under the contract, 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 be about 199.9m long and 28.0m wide, with gross tonnage of approximately 17,300 tonnes.
They will have a maximum prescribed capacity for 763 passengers and carrying capacity for around 136 13-meter trucks and 100 passenger cars.
The main power plant will be a high-performance dual-fuel engine able to operate on both liquefied natural gas (LNG) and A‐type heavy oil, the first for a Japanese ferry. These engines are set to provide a 20% reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions compared to existing vessels and eliminate sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions.
To be named Sunflower Kurenai and Sunflower Murasaki, the ferries will be quieter than current vessels, according to MOL.