On March 24, NYK took delivery of Plumeria Leader, a pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) capable of navigating oceans with only LNG as the ship’s main fuel. The vessel was built at the Shin Kurushima Dockyard of Shin Kurushima Toyohashi Shipbuilding Co. Ltd., according to the company's release.
This is NYK's second LNG-fueled car carrier following the Sakura Leader. By vessel modification and the switch to LNG, Plumeria Leader will make the ship up to approximately 40% more energy efficient (by reducing CO2 emissions per unit of transport) compared to ships using conventional heavy oil fired engines. The vessel is also expected to reduce sulfur oxide (SOx) emissions by approximately 99% and nitrogen oxides (NOx) by approximately 86% compared to ships using conventional heavy oil fired engines.
This ship will be one of the world’s largest PCTCs, capable of transporting approximately 7,000 units (standard vehicle equivalent) per voyage, beginning with vehicles produced by the Toyota Motor Corporation.
NYK set a long-term target of net-zero emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) by 2050 for the NYK Group's oceangoing businesses.
NYK is positioning LNG fuel as one of the bridge solutions until future zero-emission ships are realized and plans to take delivery a total of 20 new LNG-fueled car carriers by 2028.
As soon as technological innovation progresses, NYK aim to switch zero-emission vessels utilizing low-emission marine fuels such as hydrogen and ammonia.