| October 16, 2003 |
| Japanese Consortium signs Long-Term Charter Agreement for
the third and the fourth New LNG Carriers with Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas Co. Ltd
II |
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| Doha, Qatar - A consortium comprising
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL), Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and Kawasaki Kisen
Kaisha, Ltd. ("K" Line) with their foreign shipping company partner, announced
the signing of a 25 year long-term charter agreement on October 16 for two new 145,000 m3
liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers to transport LNG for Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas
Co. Ltd II (RasGas II). This follows two earlier agreements for LNG carriers
signed on October 16, 2002 and January 16, 2003, bringing to four the total number of LNG
carriers now transporting LNG for RasGas II. |
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| The consortium signed a shipbuilding contract with Samsung
Heavy Industries Co., Ltd for the construction of two new ships. These new ships, which
will feature a membrane cargo containment system, are scheduled for delivery in September
2005 and November 2005. They will be employed in the exportation of LNG from Ras Laffan,
Qatar to either North America or Europe. K Line will be appointed as the shipmanager of
the 3rd ship and MOL for the 4th ship. |
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| RasGas II, a company 70% owned by Qatar Petroleum and 30% by
ExxonMobil, was established to expand LNG facilities to a production capability of 9.4
million tons of LNG annually, for export to Edison Gas S.p.A of Italy, Endesa Generacion
S.A. of Spain, Petronet LNG Ltd of India, and the North American / European markets. |
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| For more information, please contact: |
| MOL |
Makoto Matsubara |
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Manager, Project Group, |
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LNG Carrier Division (B) |
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Tel: 81-3-3587-7367/Fax: 81-3-3587-7748 |
| NYK |
Takeo Hayashi |
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Deputy General Manager, Gas Carrier Group |
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Tel: 81-3-3284-5620/Fax: 81-3-3284-6253 |
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| "K" LINE
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Norihiko Fujii |
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Deputy General Manager, LNG Group |
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Tel: 81-3-3595-5497/Fax: 81-3-3595-5512 |
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