Mitsui backs maritime investment fund to support sustainable shipping

Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co. has decided to invest in a maritime investment fund, managed by Danish fund management company Navigare Capital Partners, targeting $650 million in capital focusing on sustainable shipping including green vessels and carriers.

As informed, the company will invest through intermediate companies, together with Mitsui & Co. Alternative Investments Limited, a subsidiary of Mitsui.

“This strategic move aligns with our commitment to meeting diverse international maritime needs while promoting stable and sustainable supply chains and reducing the carbon profile of the shipping industry,” Mitsui noted.

Navigare was established in 2017 by Robert Maersk Uggla, the Chairman of Danish shipping major A.P. Moller Maersk. It has since formed and operated two maritime investment funds. Accumulated operating assets have reached approximately $2 billion.

MIF III, its third fund, is expected to invest in maritime assets totaling about $1.5 billion (approximately ¥230 billion). With a focus on environmentally friendly vessels for stable and sustainable maritime transportation, investment will cover offshore vessels, gas carriers, container vessels, car carriers, tankers, and bulk carriers.

In the international shipping industry, it is expected that tighter environmental regulations and the diversification and increasing complexity of vessel types will give rise to a greater demand for diversified shipping asset management business.

While connecting its networks in the vessel/shipping industries with the domestic financial market in order to maximize profits of MIF III, Mitsui plans to promote maritime asset management business together with Navigare.

The partners aim to meet the diverse international maritime needs and contribute to building a foundation for securing stable and sustainable supply in society.

Mitsui has recently teamed up with Brazilian state-owned oil and gas company Petrobras to explore low-carbon business opportunities in Brazil. The firm also joined a project for the establishment of an ammonia supply chain based in the Tomakomai area of Hokkaido, Japan.