MOL orders eight LNG-fuelled car carriers

Japanese shipping major Mitsui O.S.K Lines (MOL) has placed orders for eight 7000-unit car capacity LNG-fuelled car carriers.

PHOTO: A model of MOL's LNG fuelled car carrier. MOL

These vessels will be delivered within the next 1-2 years. MOL aims to operate 90 LNG-fuelled vessels by 2030, before gradually shifting to zero-emission fuels such as ammonia and hydrogen.

Several shipowners have piled up orders for LNG-fuelled vessels in recent years. 222 LNG-fuelled ships were ordered in 2022, which will join the current strong fleet of 355, classification society DNV data shows. But it estimates that only 30-40% of these ships actually run on LNG, opting instead for conventional fuels or biofuel blends.

MOL says that these car carriers will primarily run on LNG when inducted. It has set a net-zero emissions target for 2050.

LNG can curb carbon dioxide emissions by about a quarter compared to conventional bunker fuels. But its methane emissions can be 36 times more potent as a GHG compared to carbon dioxide over a century, according to a World Bank study.

By Nithin Chandran

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