NYK orders ‘world’s largest’ LNG fueled car carrier

Japanese shipping giant Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) has placed an order for the world largest pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) fueled by liquefied natural gas.

A keel-laying ceremony was held on September 20 at Shin Kurushima Toyohashi Shipbuilding, the shipper said in its statement on Tuesday.

The ship is scheduled to be delivered in 2020 and will be the first large LNG-fueled PCTC to be built in Japan.

To minimize a reduction in vehicle loading capacity caused by the installation of LNG fuel tanks, in addition to optimizing major items such as ship width, several designs for maximizing the cargo loading space will be implemented, and the new vessel will be able to transport approximately 7,000 units per voyage.

With the support by Japan’s Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism for its model project to reduce CO2 emissions by using alternative fuel, the vessel will be installed with the technology to reduce further CO2 emissions and the experimental verification in its actual voyage will be scheduled.

The ship will be about 40 percent more energy efficient (reducing CO2 emissions per unit of transport), exceeding the International Maritime Organization (IMO) EEDI phase 3 requirements that will become effective in 2025, NYK said.

The vessel is additionally expected to reduce sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions by approximately 99 percent and nitrogen oxides (NOx) by approximately 86 percent compared to conventional heavy oil-fired engines.