Mitsubishi Shipbuilding, a group company of Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), has received orders for two large, high-speed ferries from compatriot transportation company Shin Nihonkai Ferry.
To be constructed at the Tategami Main Plant of MHI’s Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, the vessels are scheduled for completion and delivery in 2021.
With a gross tonnage of 15,400 tons, each of the two newbuilds will be 222.5 meters long and 25 meters wide. What is more, each of them will have a capacity of 268 passengers, 154 trucks and 30 passenger cars.
A new optimal hull type would improve energy efficiency by 6% compared to the running vessel, according to the shipbuilder.
The ferry pair would also be equipped with scrubbers for the four main engines and three electric generators to control airborne emissions of sulfur oxides (SOx) in order to comply with the IMO 2020 sulphur cap which is entering into force in all marine areas from 2020.
As the “modal shift” from on-land to marine transport is progressing in the Japanese transportation economy, the demand for domestic ferries and RoRo vessels grows accompanying enlargement of capacity.
To meet this demand, MHI would in Nagasaki consolidate organizational structure to build those type of ships and in Shimonoseki enlarge capacity of building facilities such as anchoring piers and cranes.