Tugboat
Safely Escorting Large Vessels, Ships Loaded with Hazardous Cargoes
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The MOL Group's tugboat business supports vessels in arriving and leaving port, berthing and unberthing, avoiding hazards, and other operations.
In recent years, as LNG has gained wider adoption as a clean energy source, transport volume has shown a steady increase.
New LNG terminals have gone into service one after another, and increasing LNG vessel traffic underscores the need for enhancements in tugboat operation capacity, from the standpoints of both quality and quantity.
Through a group company, MOL is working to expand its fleet by introducing a succession of advanced tugboats, including the Ishin, the first LNG-fueled tugboat in western Japan (launched in April 2019), to precisely address these customer needs and reduce the environmental impact of maritime operations. At the same time, we are working to improve the maintenance of equipment and instruments, upgrade the skills of crewmembers, and enhance safety training with the goal of reliable, accident-free operation. The Ishin is Japan's first tugboat built to conform to the IGF code (*1). It earned the top rating of five stars from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)'s energy conservation rating system for Japan's coastal ships (*2).
(*1) The IGF Code stands for the International Code of Safety for Ships using Gases or other Low-flashpoint Fuels, aimed at ensuring the safety of LNG-fueled vessels. The code establishes safety requirements for vessels that run on gas and low-flashpoint fuels, and took effect on January 1, 2017.
(*2) The program aims to "visualize" energy savings and the effects of CO2 reduction in the vessel planning and design stages and objectively evaluate ships' energy-saving and CO2 reduction performance to foster the development of coastal ships that offer greater energy saving and CO2 reduction.
Related URL: MOL Group (Tugboat Operation)