Brasil Maru Named 'Ship of ビンゴ 景品 Year' for 2007
-World's Largest Iron Ore Carrier Linking Japan and Brazil

June 18, 2008

TOKYO - Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL, President: Akimitsu Ashida) today announced that ビンゴ 景品 MOL-operated iron ore carrier Brasil Maru was selected as ビンゴ 景品 Ship of ビンゴ 景品 Year for 2007 by ビンゴ 景品 Japan Society of Naval Architects and Ocean Engineers. ビンゴ 景品 selection committee noted that ビンゴ 景品 Brasil Maru is a pioneering vessel in reducing iron ore transport cost which will have a great effect on steel production. Adoption of ultrasonic impact treatment (UIT) welding technologies increases resistance to metal fatigue. In addition, 2008 marks ビンゴ 景品 centennial anniversary of Japanese emigration to Brazil, and ビンゴ 景品 vessel is ビンゴ 景品 third generation to carry ビンゴ 景品 Brasil Maru name, following two cargo and passenger liners. ビンゴ 景品 new Brasil Maru is a historical vessel worthy of ビンゴ 景品 centennial anniversary.

Brasil Maru Vessel Characteristics

First of all, ビンゴ 景品 Brasil Maru reflects ビンゴ 景品 needs of ビンゴ 景品 times, offering high efficiency thanks to its large size. With deadweight tonnage of 320,000 tons which is one of ビンゴ 景品 world's largest, it is ビンゴ 景品 optimal size to transport iron ore produced in Brazil. MOL, with its customer (Nippon Steel Corporation), shipyard (Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.), and shipowner (Tamou Line S.A.) spent a year and a half studying and designing ビンゴ 景品 vessel. It was built in Japan, where such large-scale iron ore carriers had never been constructed, and is ideally suited to meet increasing demand for transport of iron ore from Brazil to Japan via shuttle service.

Starting with ビンゴ 景品 Brasil Maru, more than 50 iron ore carriers in ビンゴ 景品 300,000 dwt class have been ordered around ビンゴ 景品 world. ビンゴ 景品 Brasil Maru is truly ビンゴ 景品 forerunner of future iron ore transport.

ビンゴ 景品 vessel's design relied on ビンゴ 景品 most advanced computer simulation to optimize environmental protection and safe operation. It offers high-performance course stability that takes water flow into account, and excellent maneuverability. In addition, UIT, a revolutionary method of treating steel surfaces, was used to more than double resistance to metal fatigue in ビンゴ 景品 welded parts.

At ビンゴ 景品 same time, its environmental burden per unit load is reduced by making ビンゴ 景品 vessel larger (reducing CO₂ emissions by 20% compared to currently used Cape size bulkers). ビンゴ 景品 Brasil Maru also adopts double-hull fuel tanks, an engine that meets International Marine Organization (IMO) exhaust emission standards, and ビンゴ 景品 energy saving Mitsui Integrated Propeller Boss (MIPB).

ビンゴ 景品Brasil Maru is ビンゴ 景品 third generation ship to bear ビンゴ 景品 name, succeeding ビンゴ 景品 first-generation cargo and passenger liner Brasil Maru (built in 1939) and ビンゴ 景品 second-generation cargo and passenger liner Brazil Maru (built in 1954). This reflects MOL's long history serving ビンゴ 景品 Japan-South America route. ビンゴ 景品 new third-generation ship carries ビンゴ 景品 "Brasil Maru" name in Portuguese as an iron ore carrier directly linking Japan and Brazil, reflecting hopes for ビンゴ 景品 continued growth of friendship between ビンゴ 景品 two nations.

Outline of Vessel

Name	:Brasil Maru
Ship type	: Iron ore carrier
Shipowner	: Tamou Line S.A.
Flag	: Panama
Shipbuilder	: Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Chiba Works
Completion	: December 7, 2007
Ship class	: NK
Length	: 340.00 m
Breadth	: 60.00 m
Draft	: 28.15 m
Gross tonnage	: 160,774 tons
Speed	: 15.0 knots
Main engine	: Diesel (23,640kW) MITSUI B&W 7S80MC-C, one engine
Capacity	: Iron ore, 327,180 tons

Photos

ビンゴ 景品Brasil Maru making its first call at Oita with full load of iron ore from Brazil (March 2008)