Spotted: Imoto Flaunts Avant-Garde Boxship

A new 540 TEU container carrier, featuring a forward accommodation block designed to reduce wind resistance, has been delivered to Kobe-based coastal feeder transporter Imoto Lines.

Ordered by the company in February 2014, the vessel, named Natori, was constructed at Kyokuyo Shipyard, Yamaguchi, Japan.

Natori is expected to operate on a loop of some thirty Japanese ports.

The 136m long vessel represents the company’s largest containership to date.

The vessel’s front-end shape is expected to save 5% of fuel consumption under average sea condition, and reduce the wind pressure by 30% compared with conventional hulls.

World Maritime News Staff