MOL runs first LNG bunkering in port of Kobe

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) bunkered LNG to the liquefied natural gas-fueled tugboat Ishin at the port of Kobe. 

The operation has been completed as part of the LNG bunkering trial organized by the Kobe City Port and Harbor Authority, MOL said in its statement.

Ishin is a tugboat owned by MOL and operated by Nihon-Tug-Boat. The trial operation marked the first LNG bunkering in the port of Kobe, and the trial confirmed that LNG fuel can be effectively supplied safely at the port.

LNG fuel for the trial was hauled by a tanker truck from Osaka Gas’ Himeji LNG plant. A truck-to-ship system was used to supply Ishin, berthed at Kobe Port’s Shinko Pier No.4.

MOL Marine has also provided maritime consulting in the trial, MOL said.

Effective January 2020, vessel exhaust emission regulations will be tightened on a global scale. In response to the new standards, an increasing number of LNG-fueled vessels are coming into service, making the development of LNG bunkering ports in Japan an urgent task.