Japanese Quartet Forms Bunkering JVs

Two Japanese shipowners and two Japanese utilities together have announced May 10 the formation of two joint ventures that will work in the LNG bunkering space in Japan.

As per the announcement made in January this year, the four companies have been in joint discussions on the commercialisation of LNG bunkering business in the Chubu region of Japan. The two new joint ventures announced are named Central LNG Marine Fuel Japan Corporation, which will operate the LNG bunkering business, and Central LNG Shipping Japan Corporation which will own the bunkering vessel. “Going forward, each of the four companies will utilise the expertise and strengths that they each possess to propel the ship-to-ship bunkering business,” they said in a joint statement.

Studies suggest that compared with heavy fuel oil, the use of LNG can reduce emissions of sulfur oxides (SOx) and particulate matter (PM) by about 100%, nitrogen oxides (NOx) by as much as 80%, and carbon dioxide (CO2) by about 30%.