Japan – Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Acquires Approval in Principle (AIP) from France’s Classification Society for Spherical Cargo Tank System for LCO2 Carriers

Jun 8, 2022 | Business

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, has acquired Approval in Principle (AIP)(1) from the French classification society Bureau Veritas (BV) for a spherical cargo tank system for liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carriers. A presentation ceremony was held on June 7 at the Metropolitan Expo exhibition center in Athens, Greece, venue for the international shipping exhibition Posidonia 2022.
LCO2 carriers transport liquefied CO2 gas in cargo tanks in a low-temperature, high-pressure state. For that reason, independent Type C tanks as defined by the IGC Code(2) are typically used for the cargo tank system of such vessels. Until now, various tank structures have been available, including cylindrical, bilobed and trilobed designs. Now, Mitsubishi Shipbuilding has succeeded in developing a spherical cargo tank system for LCO2 carriers, applying its advanced technologies in structural analysis and material evaluation cultivated through the design and construction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers equipped with spherical tanks. Development of the new spherical structure for LCO2 carriers resulted in acquisition of the AIP from BV.

Compared with cylindrical, bilobed and trilobed options, spherically shaped tanks offer greater structural strength against internal pressure of the tank. The adoption of Mitsubishi Shipbuilding’s spherical cargo tank system is expected to further optimization of ship arrangement and enhance the economic performance of LCO2 carriers.

As part of the energy transition strategy being promoted by MHI Group, Mitsubishi Shipbuilding has established a growth strategy called “MARINE FUTURE STREAM vision for 2050”. The strategy focuses on two overarching targets: “decarbonization of the maritime economy” through use of renewable energies and carbon recycling, and “safe and secure future for society” through autonomous operation and electrification. The company seeks to achieve these dual goals through creation and implementation of marine-related innovations. With acquisition of the new AIP for its spherical cargo tank system for LCO2 carriers, going forward Mitsubishi Shipbuilding will ever more actively pursue the development of LCO2 carriers and related business as a marine system integrator. At the same time, the company will also dedicate its full resources to developing and providing technologies to respond flexibly to the diverse LCO2 carrier needs of the market to build a CCUS(3) value chain — with the ultimate goal of achieving a CCUS value chain straddling land and sea, to realize a decarbonized society.

(1) Approval in Principle (AIP) indicates that a certification body has reviewed an item’s basic design and confirmed that it meets technical requirements and safety standards. Inspection of Mitsubishi Shipbuilding’s spherical cargo tank system was conducted based on the IGC Code as it applies to marine vessels that transport liquefied gas in bulk, as well as BV’s own classification regulations.
(2) The International Code for the Construction and Equipment of Ships Carrying Liquefied Gases in Bulk (IGC Code) is an international regulation stipulating the safety requirements for ships that transport LCO2, LNG, or other liquefied gases as cargo in bulk.
(3) CCUS: carbon capture, utilization and storage

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Mitsubishi Corporation signs Participation Agreement with Sempra Infrastructure, TotalEnergies, Mitsui for Carbon Sequestration Project in Louisiana

May 25, 2022 | Business

Mitsubishi Corporation is pleased to announce that it has signed a participation agreement with Sempra Infrastructure, TotalEnergies and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. for the development of the proposed Hackberry Carbon Sequestration (HCS) project at the site in Southwest Louisiana.

The project aims to capture, transport and sequestrate carbon dioxide (CO2), primary sourced from Cameron LNG, and the participation agreement provides the basis for the parties to potentially enter into a joint venture with Sempra Infrastructure for the HCS project. Last summer, the Hackberry Carbon Sequestration, LLC, which is owned by Sempra Infrastructure, filed an application for a Class VI injection well permit from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for permanent storage of up to 2 million tonnes per annum of CO2.

As underpinned in both Roadmap to a Carbon Neutral Society and Midterm Corporate Strategy 2024, announced in October 2021 and May 2022 respectively, MC is placing greater emphasis on energy transformations (EX). By lowering the carbon footprint throughout the LNG value chain through CCS and other EX initiatives, MC hopes to spearhead future transformations and help societies to decarbonize by providing a stable supply of clean energies.

“We are thrilled to participate in a business opportunity that could potentially lower the carbon intensity of LNG produced from the Cameron LNG Project, through which we will be able to provide additional value to our customers,” said Masaru Saito, Senior Vice President and Division COO, North America Div., Mitsubishi Corporation. “CCS promises to play an important role in achieving net-zero emissions on a global scale, so we are excited about making this project happen and looking forward to expanding our CCS business portfolio.”

The development of the HCS project is subject to risks and uncertainties, including signing definitive agreements, securing all necessary permits, and reaching a final investment decision.

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Topic: Press release summary

Japan – Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and NYK Line Obtain Approval in Principle (AiP) from Classification Society ClassNK for Large LCO2 Carrier

May 17, 2022 | Business

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line) have been granted Approval in Principle (AiP)(Note) from the Japanese classification society ClassNK for joint development of CO2 transport technology for liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carriers.

Image of an LCO2 carrier

LCO2 carriers transport liquefied CO2 at low temperature and high pressure, which is contained in the cargo tank system. Since the design of cargo containment system depend strongly on the condition of liquefied CO2 such as their temperature and pressure, it is an important technical development issue to increase the size of cargo tank systems and hulls for future mass transportation.

In the joint development of LCO2 carriers by Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and NYK Line, which is so performed as to resolve such technical issues, the feasibility and compliance with regulations and standards were confirmed for each cargo tank system and hull section, taking into account different tank pressure settings for medium and large vessels, leading to the grant of the AiP.
MHI Group is strategically working to strengthen the energy transition business, and Mitsubishi Shipbuilding is promoting the development and commercialization of LCO2 carriers. MHI believes that the grant of the AiP for a large LCO2 carrier will make a significant contribution to the realization of this strategy.

NYK Line believes that the establishment of CO2 transport technology by large vessels will greatly contribute to the realization of a carbon-neutral society. NYK is working together with the MHI Group, which possesses a wide range of technologies in the CCUS value chain, to achieve the early realization of not only small and medium-sized vessels but also large LCO2 carriers. Based on the design of the LCO2 carrier granted the AiP, NYK Line will further promote its participation in the CCUS value chain, such as by studying the design of the LCO2 carrier for each project, including further enlargement of the size of vessels.

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and NYK Line will utilize the strengths and knowledge of each company, which complement each other, to advance the joint development currently underway, and through the AiP, will continue to make efforts to develop various technologies, including LCO2 carriers, necessary for building the CCUS value chain, and contribute to the realization of a carbon-neutral society.

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding has established the MARINE FUTURE STREAM vision for 2050 in the ship and marine sector, setting the goals of “decarbonization of the maritime economy” through autonomous operation and electrification, and “safe and secure future for society” through renewable energy and the carbon cycle, and working to generate and implement ideas for marine-related innovation. Going forward, as a marine systems integrator, Mitsubishi Shipbuilding will continue to actively develop and commercialize LCO2 carriers, build a CCUS value chain spanning land and sea, and strive to realize a decarbonized world.

*Approval in Principle (AiP) indicates that a certification body has reviewed the basic design and confirmed that it meets the technical requirements and standards for safety. The inspection of this system was conducted based on the IGC Code that applies to marine vessels that transport liquefied gas in bulk and NK’s ship classification regulations.

About MHI Group

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group is one of the world’s leading industrial groups, spanning energy, logistics & infrastructure, industrial machinery, aerospace and defense. MHI Group combines cutting-edge technology with deep experience to deliver innovative, integrated solutions that help to realize a carbon neutral world, improve the quality of life and ensure a safer world. For more information, please visit www.mhi.com or follow our insights and stories on spectra.mhi.com.

Copyright ©2022 JCN Newswire. All rights reserved. A division of Japan Corporate News Network.

Mitsubishi Electric’s ME Innovation Fund Invests in QunaSys Startup

May 13, 2022 | Business

Developer of advanced quantum-computing software that customers can use without special expertise

TOKYO – WEBWIRE –



Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (TOKYO: 6503) announced that its ME Innovation Fund has invested in QunaSys, Inc., a leading Japanese startup that has gathered diverse research scientists to develop innovative algorithms that maximize the potential of quantum computing, including through applications that can be used without special expertise. QunaSys’s active involvement in quantum-computing research and development includes management of the QPARC industry consortium to help partners learn about quantum computers.


Through the investment, QunaSys aims to apply its research toward practical new applications. In partnership with Mitsubishi Electric, QunaSys will accelerate its research and development of quantum-chemical calculations and quantum machine learning as well as the fusion of these fields. The two parties look forward to strengthening their working relationship in order to tackle major challenges in the manufacturing industry.


Quantum computing enables companies to solve problems exponentially faster than in the case of using conventional computers. Many applications are being considered for quantum computers, including quantum chemical calculations and quantum machine learning.


Tennin Yan, CEO of QunaSys, Inc. said: “Demands are increasing for new materials, especially those with low environmental impact. High-precision quantum chemical calculations, which can only be achieved by using quantum computers, are expected to help reduce the time and cost of research and development as well as facilitate more efficient exploration.”


Hiroshi Sakakibara, Executive Officer and CDO of Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, said: “Advances in quantum machine learning are expected to model unknown data distributions that could not have been discovered using conventional machine learning. We see the potential not only to solve identified problems faster, but also to solve problems that have never been explored. Furthermore, we expect such undertakings to help us create technological assets that are even more valuable for our customers and society.”


About QunaSys, Inc.


CEO: Tennin Yan


Location: Aqua Hakusan Building, 9th Floor, 1-13-7 Hakusan, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0001, Japan


Establishment: February 2018


Business: Development of algorithms and applications for quantum computing


Website: https://qunasys.com/en/

Japan – Mitsubishi Corporation Invests in Climate-tech through Breakthrough Energy Catalyst

Apr 25, 2022 | Business

Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) is pleased to announce its decision to invest in Breakthrough Energy Catalyst (Catalyst), a program dedicated to accelerating innovative climate technologies. MC plans to invest 100 million USD in Catalyst, and in doing so will become the first company headquartered in Asia to make a commitment of this scale to the fund.

Catalyst is a first-of-its-kind model that brings together companies, governments, and private philanthropy to accelerate the adoption of critical, next generation climate technologies. Catalyst is part of Breakthrough Energy, a network of initiatives founded by Bill Gates in 2015 dedicated to funding, developing, commercializing, and scaling the technologies that will be necessary to avoid a climate disaster.

By making targeted investments in climate technologies that have proven their potential through research and development, Catalyst aims to speed up their large-scale commercialization. This will significantly decrease the price of new clean products, increase their availability in the market, and demonstrate how to finance the infrastructure of decarbonization at scale.

Having unveiled its own roadmap to carbon neutrality in October 2021, MC has publicly disclosed both its greenhouse-gas emissions reduction targets and energy-transformation (EX) investment guidelines. As a private entity with ownership in resource, energy and many other businesses, MC is fully committed to doing its part in the worldwide push to decarbonize.

Renewables, hydrogen, ammonia and methanation are just some of the next-generation energy initiatives that MC is now examining as future earnings pillars, but MC also understands the challenges to achieving a net-zero world. Swift application of new technologies and innovations will be crucial to meeting those challenges.

Catalyst creates a framework in which Breakthrough Energy and its public and private sector partners including governments, corporations, and philanthropic organizations, will work together to commercialize high-impact decarbonization technologies through measures such as equity investment, grant funding and offtake agreements. These technologies will underpin a zero-carbon economy but are currently more expensive than their existing fossil-fuel emitting counterparts. The difference between these costs is what is now referred to as “Green Premium.”

The current Catalyst focus areas are (1) Clean Hydrogen (and related infrastructure), (2) Long-duration Energy Storage (LDES), (3) Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), and (4) Direct Air Capture (DAC). In future, the Catalyst program and its partners may expand its focus to include other hard-to-abate sectors. MC also considers these technologies vital to its own EX strategies and net-zero roadmap.

By participating in this program, MC is demonstrating a commitment to growing climate technologies and further reducing our carbon footprint in ways that will not compromise our quality of life.

At MC we are proud of the wealth of expertise and networks that we have built up in Japan and throughout Asia. We remain dedicated to optimizing those assets so that we can assist our Catalyst partners in steel, aviation, finance, energy and other industries. Together we will work to enhance the program’s value and help us transition to a carbon-neutral world.

Program Details
Please refer to the program guide for details.
https://www.breakthroughenergy.org/scaling-innovation/catalyst

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