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Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) and Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. have signed a technological collaboration agreement on container carriers. The initiative will aim to combine MHI's technological capabilities in the development of fuel-saving vessels and Imabari's strong cost competitiveness.

By effectively utilizing the shipyards of both companies, together MHI and Imabari will aim to become capable of flexibly accommodating bulk orders - e.g. construction of multiple ships of the same design - thus strengthening and expanding their respective businesses in the field of high-value-added container carriers.

The three-year collaboration agreement, which may be extended in the future, encompasses all container carriers, without setting limitations on container carrying capacity or propulsion systems.

Given the current trend towards the adoption of international marine transportation rules to reduce emissions, coupled with the continuing rise in bunker fuel prices, demand by shipowners for energy-saving vessels has increasing significantly.

Many large container carriers are powered by marine diesel engines using heavy oil fuel, which emits much more carbon dioxide (CO2) than other fuel types. In response, MHI has developed various technologies to meet the needs of customers. These include technology enabling the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as fuel for a ship's propulsion system and the Mitsubishi Air Lubrication System (MALS). MALS is MHI's proprietary technology that reduces frictional resistance between a vessel hull and seawater using air bubbles produced at the vessel bottom, thus achieving reductions in energy usage and CO2 emissions.

MHI is recognized as a pioneer in Japan's container carrier construction industry, completing the Hakone-maru, the first Japanese-built container ship, for Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) in 1968. To date, MHI has built 147 container carriers in total , including vessels currently under construction. Imabari Shipbuilding is Japan's largest shipbuilder, both in newbuilding tonnage and shipbuilding sales. The company is one of only a few dedicated shipbuilding companies capable of constructing large-sized container carriers.

MHI has adopted a long-term strategy for its shipbuilding and ocean development business to focus on high-value-added vessels and to strengthen its engineering operations by providing proprietary technologies to other companies, both in Japan and abroad. Imabari, meanwhile, has been seeking to obtain advanced ship-related technologies, including fuel-saving features.

As a result, both companies have made the decision to cooperate with eachother in order to achieve their respective targets.