JMSDF launches new tanker vessel
The new Japanese naval auxiliary tanker ‘YOT 01’ was launched on 20 October. (JMSDF)
To resupply naval bases in its southwest archipelago, Japan is building two coastal tankers.
The ‘YOT 01’ oil tanker for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) was launched in Shin Kurushima Dockyard in Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture, on 20 October.
Built to merchant ship tanker standard, the tanker can carry 4,900t of fuel. ‘YOT-01’ will be commissioned into the JMSDF in April 2022.
Shin Kurushima Dockyard received a JPY5.06 billion ($44.6 million) order for two tankers in March 2020. ‘YOT-02’ should enter service in July 2022.
Shin Kurushima Dockyard has a 17% share of the global car carrier vessel market, but this was its first JMSDF order. For the project, the dockyard needed to
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