First Ship to Ship LNG Bunkering Operation Undertaken in Japan

JAPAN – The joint venture company formed by the likes of K Line, NYK, Toyota Tsusho and the Jera company to supply bunkering services in the Chubu region which we reported on in May this year, has undertaken its first ship to ship LNG fuel supply on 20 October to the car carrier Sakura Leader.

The fuelling operation was performed by the first ever LNG bunkering vessel in Japan, the consortium owned Kaguya which is based at Jera’s Kawagoe Thermal Power Station, and scheduled to supply LNG fuel to K Line’s own first LNG-fuelled car carrier that is scheduled to be delivered by the end of FY2020.

As part of this cooperation K Line is working towards reducing GHG emissions based on its long-term environmental policy ‘Environmental Vision 2050' to accommodate the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) own a goal of halving greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from international shipping by at least 50% by 2050 compared to 2008.

The Kaguya has an LNG cargo tank capacity of 3,500 m³ with an overall gross tonnage of 4,044 tonnes. She is 81.7 metres overall, with a beam of 18 metres and was built at the yard of Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. in Sakaide and christened earlier this year.

Photo: The Kaguya, dwarfed by the giant car carrier she is refuelling.