The Japanese company Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) has ordered its sixth liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) dual-fuel very large LPG / liquefied ammonia gas carrier (VLGC) from Kawasaki Heavy Industries.
The ship will be built at the KHI Sakaide Works shipyard in Japan and is set for delivery in 2026.
This vessel, with a length overall approximately of 230 meters, is the eighth in NYK’s fleet of LPG-fueled LPG carriers and the sixth in a new type of vessel capable of carrying ammonia.
In addition to the LPG dual-fuel engine, the new ship will have a shaft generator that can generate electricity during the voyage, by using the rotation of the shaft that connects the main engine to the propeller.
The movement to strategically utilize ammonia in decarbonization is gaining momentum worldwide and the Japanese major NYK was a partner in the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation GCMD-commissioned ammonia bunkering pilot safety study that was completed in April.
As the shipowner says NYK is one of the 22 study partners contributed significantly to the safety study by sharing the learnings from its experience with ammonia.
Japan is one of the top three shipowning countries in the world, and Japanese merchant vessels account for around 11% of world tonnage.
Clarksons green transition team figures indicate that Japan leads other nations in alternative-fuel-ready vessel orders, constituting about 10% of the global equivalent.
