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Tokyo LNG Tanker Co. Ltd. - a wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo Gas Co. Ltd., has signed a shipbuilding contract with Japan Marine United Corporation (JMU) for the construction of two LNG vessels with a 165,000-cubic-metre tank capacity.

Tokyo LNG Tanker has also signed an agreement regarding the joint ownership and 20-year charter of the vessels with Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL) and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line).

The two LNG ships, scheduled to be delivered in 2017, will be employed for mainly transporting LNG from U.S. Cove Point Project. They have been designed to transit the expanded Panama Canal.

Ship management of the vessels will be carried out by MOL and NYK Line respectively, in accordance with the 20-year time charter agreement. When the vessels are delivered, the number of LNG vessels in Tokyo LNG Tanker's fleet will become twelve.

Tokyo LNG Tanker says the new ships will be 'a new type of LNG vessel'. The vessels' containment system is SPB (Self-supporting Prismatic-shape IMO type B), which is a Japanese technology developed by IHI Corporation and JMU. The containment system is designed to maximize the utilization of the space inside the hull, which in turn has been designed to optimize fuel consumption.

According to Tokyo LNG Tanker, it is the first time that the SPB system has been adopted for LNG vessels in 24 years, and the first time that the Japanese firm has ordered an LNG vessel with SPB tanks. The two ships are also set to be the world's largest LNG vessels with SPB tanks.

To comply with U.S. emission control regulations, the two LNG ships will be equipped with a Tri-Fuel Diesel Electric (TFDE) propulsion system, thus allowing the use of low sulphur fuel or gas.

Tokyo LNG Tanker claims that the vessels are also designed with the world's lowest boil-off rate (0.08%/day), and, in combination with TFDE propulsion, will show "excellent fuel consumption and eco-friendly performance".