Top Page > Press Release 2025 > Sunflower Kamuy, the 1st LNG-fueled Ferry on Oarai-Tomakomai Route, Enters Service

Sunflower Kamuy, the 1st LNG-fueled Ferry on Oarai-Tomakomai Route, Enters Service

January 23, 2025

TOKYO-Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL; President & CEO: Takeshi Hashimoto) today announced that on January 21, the LNG-fueled ferry Sunflower Kamuy, owned by MOL and operated by its group company MOL Sunflower Ltd. (President & CEO: Hirotoshi Ushioku; Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo), entered service in Oarai. The vessel will serve the Oarai-Tomakomai route between Ibaraki Prefecture and Hokkaido as a replacement for the Sunflower Daisetsu.

"The LNG-fueled ferry Sunflower Kamuy"

The adoption of various state-of-the-art technologies, such as the "Ishin"(Note 1) ship design which utilizes lift from oblique headwinds as propulsive power, and the "Spray Tearing Plate (STEP)" energy-saving device developed by Naikai Zosen Corporation (President: Hiroshi Terao; Headquarters: Onomichi-shi, Hiroshima Prefecture) and other companies, in addition to the installation of high-propulsion engines, which mainly use LNG fuel, can now reduce CO2 emissions by about 35% compared to current vessels in service.
MOL will also strive to support Japan's modal shift and solve the "2024 logistics problem" by expanding the loading space for cargo vehicles compared to vessels now in service and providing cabins for all truck drivers for greater comfort. In addition, the new ferry features newly introduced facilities such as a Gym, Kids Space, Promenade along with the same Grand Bath with views of the sea and Sauna as before, and other enhanced public spaces. It also includes new pet-friendly rooms that allow passengers to bring their pets along when they travel.

Hall
Grand Bath
Passenger room (Superior With Pet)
Passenger room (Comfort S Twin)
MOL Sunflower Service Routes

The vessel will be the third LNG-fueled ferry operated by MOL Sunflower, following the Sunflower Kurenai and Sunflower Murasaki, which have been in service on the Osaka-Beppu route from 2023.
Along with the sister vessel Sunflower Pirka, scheduled to enter service in early summer 2025, MOL Sunflower will operate a fleet of four LNG-fueled ferries on the Oarai-Tomakomai route and the Osaka-Beppu route within 2025. MOL Sunflower operates 10 ferries and 4 RORO vessels on 6 routes throughout Japan, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, providing a stable service for both logistics and passengers with the largest fleet and the most extensive route network in Japan.

The MOL Group aims to achieve net-zero GHG emissions by 2050, and in line with the "MOL Group Environmental Vision 2.2," the group will continue to pursue a strategy of adopting clean alternative fuels to achieve decarbonization and low carbon emissions. The group not only leads the way in environmental responsiveness in the coastal ferry business, but also continues to research and study the use of new fuels as alternatives to LNG in the future, intending to be the first in the industry to take a proactive approach.

* Press releases/Information related to the Sunflower Kamuy and Sunflower Pirka on the Oarai-Tomakomai route

February 17, 2022: MOL and MOL Ferry to Build 2 Cutting-edge LNG-powered Ferries - Introducing Super Eco Ferries Adopting Wind Power: Responding to Accelerating Modal Shift - | Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (mol.co.jp/en)
April 11, 2024: Naming and Launching Ceremony for the Sunflower Kamuy Held 1st LNG-fueled Ferry on Oarai-Tomakomai Route - MOL Group's 3rd LNG-fueled Ferry to Enter Service in Early 2025, Bringing Fleet to 4 -| Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (mol.co.jp/en)
September 4, 2024: Naming and Launching Ceremony Held for Sunflower Pirka, LNG-fueled Ferry on Oarai-Tomakomai Route -LNG-fueled Tugboat Ishin Supports Launching Operations- | Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (mol.co.jp/en)

* Press releases related to Sunflower Kurenai and Sunflower Murasaki on Osaka-Beppu route

January 16, 2023: Japan's 1st LNG-fueled ferry, Sunflower Kurenai, Enters Service - Reducing Environmental Impact, Realizing Modal Shift and Offering 'Casual Cruise' - | Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (mol.co.jp/en)
April 17, 2023: MOL Group's 2nd LNG-fueled Ferry, Sunflower Murasaki, Enters Service - New Company Plans to Operate 4 Vessels by 2025 as MOL Group Steadily Expands LNG-fueled Fleet - | Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (mol.co.jp/en)

(Note 1) The ship design features a shape that reduces wind pressure from the bow and the sides, jointly developed by MOL, MOL Techno-Trade, Ltd., Akishima Laboratories (Mitsui Zosen) Inc. It smooths out the wind flow and uses lift force received from diagonal headwinds to help propel the ship. This utilizes the characteristics of ferries operating at high speed.
For details, please refer to the February 17, 2022, press release.
MOL and MOL Ferry to Build 2 Cutting-edge LNG-powered Ferries - Introducing Super Eco Ferries Adopting Wind Power: Responding to Accelerating Modal Shift -

MOL Group 5 Sustainability Issues
MOL Group identifies "Sustainability Issues" (Materiality) as our key issues for sustainable growth with society through realization of the Group Vision.
We anticipate this initiative to contribute especially to the realization of "Safety & Value -Provide added value through safe transportation and our social infrastructure business-", "Environment -Conservation for Marine and global environment-," and "Innovation -Innovation for development in marine technology-."