Three major Japanese ocean-going shipping companies, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line), and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K LINE), along with the Japanese Shipowners’ Association (JSA) have initiated concrete discussions regarding the donation of a large-sized training vessel to the Japan Agency of Maritime Education and Training for Seafarers (JMETS).
The Japanese ocean-going shipping industry recognizes the critical importance of training and securing highly skilled Japanese seafarers to maintain and further develop maritime transport, which is a vital infrastructure for Japan’s economy and daily life.
Therefore, the industry has decided to begin exploring the donation of a large-sized training vessel to actively support the steady progress of JMETS’s medium-term reforms based on the ministry of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism (MLIT)’s study group report on JMETS’s medium-term strategy.
The first step will be to examine the concrete specifications for the training vessel and engage in discussions with shipyards, aiming for completion around 2030.
“We sincerely hope that JMETS’s reforms will progress steadily based on the MLIT study group’s report, and that our donation of this training ship will contribute to the healthy and stable development of training and securing highly skilled Japanese seafarers,” MOL said in its announcement.
