Nihon Shipyard is to receive technical and engineering support from parent company Imabari Shipbuilding and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
An agreement has been signed between Nihon Shipyard and MI LNG, a commercial joint venture between Imabari and MHI that was originally formed to target the LNG carrier market.
Under the new agreement, which kicks off on 1 July, MI LNG will provide technical, engineering and design support to Nihon Shipyard.
The agreement covers conventional and alternative fuel vessels. It will also be extended to liquified CO2 carriers (LCO2).
Explaining the reasons behind the agreement, MHI said: “As initiatives towards decarbonisation accelerate in the maritime industry, demand is growing for construction of LNG-fuelled ships as an interim solution until conversion to new fuels is achieved.
“At the same time, demand is also taking shape for vessels running on alternative fuels such as ammonia and methanol. Meanwhile, LCO2 carriers are garnering attention as effective means for transporting captured CO2 safely and in large volumes.”
Nihon Shipyard was established as a joint-venture company between Japan Marine United and Imabari Shipbuilding, and has become the country’s largest shipbuilding alliance.
That alliance has now been strengthened through the involvement of MHI.
MHI was once Japan’s largest and most technically advanced shipbuilding company.
As the country’s yards have become less competitive, it has slowly been withdrawing from production and has increasingly focused its shipbuilding business on marketing its technology, design and engineering skills.
