Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) and Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. have signed a technological collaboration agreement on container carriers
The initiative aims to combine MHI's technological capabilities, as in the development of energy-saving vessels, and Imabari's strong cost competitiveness, in order to establish an advantageous framework for competing in the international shipbuilding market.
By effectively utilizing the shipyards of both companies, together MHI and Imabari will become capable of flexibly accommodating bulk orders - e.g. construction of multiple ships of the same design - thus strengthening and expanding their respective business for high-value-added container carriers.
The three-year collaboration agreement, which can be extended upon discussion, encompasses all container carriers, without setting limitations on container carrying capacity or propulsion systems. Going forward, for business opportunities relating to container carrier construction, the two companies will exhaustively consider the appropriate ship type, propulsion system and other technological features to match the shipowner's needs, and propose the optimum solution.
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-size container carriers.