NYK to Retrofit Tugboat to Ammonia Propulsion

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Tuesday August 9, 2022

Japanese shipping firm NYK is set to retrofit one of its LNG-fuelled tugboats to run on ammonia.

Keihin Dock Co will retrofit the tugboat Sakigake, operated by Shin-Nippon Kaiyosha Corporation, to ammonia propulsion, NYK said in a statement on its website on Tuesday. Both firms are NYK subsidiaries.

The tug operates in Tokyo Bay, and its retrofit is expected to be completed in 2024. The vessel currently runs on LNG.

"In the development process, there were various design challenges in using ammonia as fuel, but the two companies overcame these challenges without changing the size of the conventional tugboat and received Approval in Principle (AiP) from Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK) in July 2022," the company said in the statement.