MOL's LNG Carrier Crew Training Earns SIGTTO Certification

March 14, 2007

TOKYO - Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President: Akimitsu Ashida) today announced that the LNG Carrier Standard Training Course implemented at the MOL Kakio Institute has been certified for compliance with the LNG carrier crew ability standards advocated by the Society of International Gas Tanker & Terminal Operations Ltd. (SIGTTO).

Det Norske Veritas (DNV) issued the certification after a two-day audit on January 18 and 19. MOL's LNG Carrier Crew Training Program and the training using a loading/discharging simulator were carefully examined and were certified as meeting DNV's "Learning Program" criteria on March 7. Our overseas training centers and instructors were certified and registered at the same time.

At the end of March, MOL instructors responsible for LNG carrier crew training at overseas training centers will gather at the MOL Kakio Institute to take the training program.

Currently, MOL operates 58 LNG carriers, and allocates crew for 26 of these ships. (About 750 seafarers serve onboard the MOL LNG fleet.) In 2010, the company will expand its fleet to 80 operated vessels and provide crew for 47 of them (about 1,300 seafarers). MOL continues to educate seagoing personnel at its training centers worldwide, based on strict, consistent quality standards.

* SIGTTO: An international organization aimed at ensuring the safety of the LNG and LPG business, from production/transport to consumption. It developed the international SIGTTO Standards for LNG carrier seafarer training. As of September 2006, SIGGTO had 151 member organizations including major international oil companies in Europe and electric power/gas companies.