MOL "Tabletop Drill" Prepares for Serious Marine Incident
- Scenario has LNG carrier stranded with steering and engine failure after collision in Tokyo Bay -

November 27, 2015

TOKYO-Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President & CEO: Junichiro Ikeda) today announced that the company conducted a tabletop drill in cooperation with the 3rd Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, based on a scenario in which an LNG carrier managed by its group ship management company collided with another vessel in Tokyo Bay, leaving the vessel stranded with no steering and serious engine problems.

The drill was held on Wednesday, November 25, with the goal of strengthening the company's emergency response structure, which is based on the MOL Group Corporate Principles - protecting the environment by maintaining strict, safe operation and navigation standards. The exercise was also designed to ensure swift reporting to concerned parties both inside and outside the company, setting up a response team, and ensuring the smooth, precise communications that are so critical in such a serious incident – in this case involving an MOL-operated vessel managed by its overseas ship management company.

The main participants included the 3rd Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, MOL executives, and relevant MOL divisions, which teamed up to organize an Emergency Control Headquarters, and the ship management company, MOL LNG Transport (Europe) Ltd.

Under the drill scenario, the LNG Pioneer collided with an ocean-going containership while heading north off Tateyama, Chiba Prefecture. The steering of the LNG Pioneer failed after the collision, and then the main engine began to malfunction, leaving the vessel stranded. The first report of the incident went immediately to the 3rd Regional Coast Guard Headquarters. MOL then organized an Emergency Control Headquarters within the company and began first-response measures and procedures that included information gathering, communications among the concerned parties, and directions and instructions to the vessel, followed held a joint media response drill.

The company continues to sharpen its group-wide emergency response readiness by sharing know-how accumulated in these emergency tabletop drills throughout the MOL Group and its fleet.