Japan gets first LNG bunkering vessel for Kyushu and Setouchi prefectures

NYK Line on Tuesday (2 April) said a ceremony for the LNG bunkering vessel KEYS Azalea was held on 28 March at the Yamatomachi Shipyard of Mitsubishi Shipbuilding in Yamaguchi Prefecture to mark the vessel’s delivery to a joint venture it is a part of. 

KEYS Azalea will provide domestic coastal distribution of LNG to consumers in the Kyushu and Setouchi areas and LNG bunkering for oceangoing vessels calling ports in the region. The ship is Japan’s first LNG bunkering project to supply LNG to vessels in this vast area.

It is also Japan’s first LNG bunkering vessel equipped with a dual-fuel engine that can use both LNG and heavy oil as fuel for the main power generation system.

Officials from KEYS Bunkering West Japan Corporation (KEYS) and Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLIT) attended and prayed for the vessel’s safe voyage.

KEYS, a joint venture established by Kyushu Electric Power, NYK Line, ITOCHU ENEX and Saibu Gas, will be the first to operate in the Kyushu and Setouchi areas. 

The construction of the ship was funded by a subsidy adopted under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism’s FY2021 LNG Bunkering Base Formation Project.

Photo credit: NYK Line
Published: 3 April 2024