Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. today announced that its group company MOL Techno-Trade, Ltd. has joined a Green Award Program aimed at promoting high-quality shipping. The program is run by the nonprofit Green Award Foundation, which was established with the objectives of protecting the marine environment and enhancing safe operation.
The program aims to improve the quality of vessels and mariners and protect the marine environment by certifying vessels for excellence in safety and low environmental impact. Companies that share the foundation’s goals support them by providing incentives.
Eleven MOL Group-operated vessels have earned certification from the Green Award Foundation. MOL Techno encourages efforts to reduce environmental impact by offering preferential prices on its energy-saving Propeller Boss Cap Fins (PBCFs) to Green Award certified vessels and shipping companies, both inside and outside the MOL Group.
The PBCF is an energy-saving device that reduces a vessel's fuel consumption by 3% to 5% by eliminating the hub vortex generated behind the rotating propeller and improving propeller efficiency. It was jointly developed by MOL, West Japan Fluid Engineering Laboratory Co., Ltd., and Mikado Propeller Co., Ltd. (now Nakashima Propeller Co., Ltd.), and it has been widely adopted worldwide since its launch in 1987. To date, over 3,300 vessels have been equipped with the PBCF. MOL Techno, MOL and Akishima Laboratories (Mitsui Zosen) Inc. continue to move ahead on joint research, and the PBCF is continually evolving.
1. Details of PBCF incentives
Target : Vessels and shipping companies that have acquired Green Award Foundation
certification
Incentive: 3% discount from contract price
Start : February 1, 2019
2. Green Award Program Participation Status (as of January 2019)
No. of vessels certified : 265
No. of companies certified : 42
No. of participant ports : 36 international ports in 14 countries (overseas: Rotterdam, Hamburg, Vancouver, etc.; Japan: Kita-Kyushu, Nagoya, Yokohama)
The MOL Group launched the “ISHIN NEXT – MOL SMART SHIP PROJECT –“ in 2016 and works to enhance the development of technologies for “safe operation” and “reducing the environmental impact.” MOL Techno subscribes to the philosophy of Green Award Foundation, which aims at protecting the marine environment, and decided to participate in the program. The group not only takes part in this program, but also continually promotes the growth of environmental and emission-free businesses to contribute to environmental protection in ports all over the world.
