MOL to invest 520b yen in LNG tanker business by 2020

[TOKYO] Japan's second-largest shipping company, Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd (MOL), plans to invest 520 billion yen (S$6.3 billion) in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker business over the next six years in a bid to expand growth.

In a new mid-term business plan unveiled on Monday, the Tokyo-based company said it aimed to increase the number of its LNG carriers to 120 by March 2020 from 66 now.

"With the revolution of shale gas and oil, demand for long-distance LNG transport is on the rise, which gives us a great growth opportunity," MOL president Koichi Muto told a news conference.