MHI Kobe Shipyard launches its last commercial vessel

The Kobe Shipyard and Machinery Works of Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) has launched its last commercial vessel. From now on the shipyard will focus on submarines under a reorganization plan announced last year that sees MHI’s commercial ship construction concentrated at its Nagasaki and Shimonoseki shipyards.

The final commercial ship from the Kobe Shipyard is the 60,200 gt pure car carrier Emerald Ace, set to be delivered to Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) in June.

Emerald Ace, measures about 200 m in overall length, 32.26 m in breadth and 34.52 m in depth and is capable of carrying 6,400 standard passenger cars at a service speed of 20.65 knots.

The Emerald Ace will be Mitsui O.S.K.’s first ship to have a hybrid electric power supply system onboard. By using power from an energy storage system, consisting of a large-size photovoltaic power generation system and a lithium-ion rechargeable battery, the vessel will not emit any greenhouse gases when it is in port.

March 10 , 2012