| January 11, 2006 |
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| Construction of 5000 unit capacity car carrier
Guangzhou Highway complete |
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| Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. ("K" Line) takes
pleasure in announcing that M/V "Guangzhou Highway", an ocean car carrier with
capacity to transport 5,000 units has been completed at Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering
Co., Ltd. (NACKS). |
| She is the last in a 3-ship series of carriers that are
being equipped for the very first time in any of the ships in our current fleet with such
an environmentally-friendly electronic-controlled engine. The 1st ship in this
series, "Shanghai Highway", entered service in August 2005, followed by the
"Tianjin Highway" in November 2005, both of which can be proudly reported as
performing very well. |
| NACKS, the shipbuilder of "Guangzhou Highway", is
a joint venture between Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation and China Ocean Shipping (Group)
Co. (COSCO), operating under the technical guidance of Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation
and is highly regarded in China as an excellent shipbuilding company. |
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| Following the same pattern as in the 2 previous ships, we
adopted new hull structure and equipment, whereas onboard this latest new building,
additional arrangements were made to also install low-sulfur fuel and bunker oil tanks in
compliance with MARPOL. |
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| Allocation of fuel and bunker oil tanks within a
triple-bottom structure |
| The above allocation is expected to enhance and further
strengthen protection of the tanks from damage when and if the hull is damaged. This new
concept is aimed to relatively lessen risk of marine pollution including oil spillage
accident as compared with traditional ship types. |
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| Electronic-controlled engine (KAWASAKI MAN B&W
7S60ME-C) |
| This electronic-controlled engine is designed to take
electronic control of timing of fuel injection and timing of opening/closing of exhaust
valves. It contributes to reduction in emission of NOx (Nitrogen Oxides), lowering PM
(particulate matter) and CO2 in low-load operation, and upgrading ship maneuverability in
slow speed required in navigational zones. |
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| Soot removal system |
| Onboard soot removal system is installed for the purpose of
removing PM (particulate matter) in exhaust gases. More precisely, our target is to have
exhaust gases from ships be as clean as possible, and effectively prevent onboard soot
from spreading towards the shore or onto wharves. Effectiveness of this soot removal
system has already been substantiated in the operations of "Shanghai Highway"
and "Tianjin Highway". |
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| Use of R404A (refrigerant) |
| Extending even greater and more friendly awareness to the
importance of our earthly environment, we have adopted environmentally-friendly R404A
(with zero coefficient of depletion of the ozone layer) as the refrigerant for onboard
refrigerators and air-conditioners. |
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| Installation of low-sulfur fuel oil tanks |
| We installed onboard low-sulfur fuel oil tanks in addition
to conventional ones. |
| These features demonstrate our strong intention to comply
with MARPOL 73/78 Annex VI (Regulation for the prevention of air pollution from ship)
through our adhering to a flexible and expansive engineering prospective. |
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| [Principal particulars of the New Ship] |
| Length overall: 179.99 m |
| Breadth moulded: 32.2 m |
| Depth (free board): 14.98 m |
| Deadweight tonnage: 15,000 mt |
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| For inquiries about this announcement, please contact below: |
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| Car Carrier Planning & Development Group |
| Shigeo Itaya, General Manager |
Tel: 03-3595-5444 |
Fax: 03-3595-5375 |
| Yoshiaki Maruyama, Manager of Planning &
Co-ordination Team |
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Tel: 03-3595-5468 |
Fax: 03-3595-5376 |
| Ship Planning Group |
|
|
| Kenjiro Takenaga, General Manager |
Tel: 03-3595-5101 |
Fax: 03-3595-5355 |
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