Osaka Gas Launches Ship-to-Ship LNG Bunkering, Establishing Full LNG Fuel Supply Capability Across Three Methods

SEA-LNG Member Osaka Gas Co., Ltd. (“Osaka Gas”) announced today that it has commenced LNG bunkering for vessels using the ship-to-ship method. With this development, Osaka Gas has become a supplier for marine LNG fuel with all three primary supply methods—ship-to-ship, truck-to-ship, and port-to-ship.

On April 21, LNG fuel was supplied from the LNG bunkering vessel SETO AZURE to a dual-fuel Capesize bulk carrier at JFE Steel Corporation’s West Japan Works in Fukuyama District, Hiroshima, marking the first operation under the ship-to-ship method.

This milestone enables Osaka Gas to deliver a flexible and stable LNG bunkering service by offering multiple supply options tailored to vessel location and operational conditions. The availability of all three methods enhances supply reliability, operational efficiency, and overall service resilience.

The ship-to-ship method—where an LNG bunkering vessel directly supplies fuel to ships at berth or anchorage—offers a high degree of operational flexibility. It also enhances operational redundancy and supply resilience by enabling LNG loading at Osaka Gas’ Senboku LNG Terminal in Osaka and Himeji LNG Terminal in Hyogo.

The SETO AZURE, owned by an Osaka Bay LNG Shipping Co., Ltd., an affiliated company of Osaka Gas, was delivered on April 9. The vessel will primarily operate in the Osaka Bay and Setouchi areas as part of Osaka Gas’ LNG bunkering operations.

LNG-fuelled vessels have been attracting increasing attention as one of the solutions for decarbonising the shipping sector, and their numbers have been rising globally.  LNG as a marine fuel significantly reduces CO₂ emissions compared with conventional heavy fuel oil, and further reductions can be achieved by transitioning to e-methane and other synthetic fuels. In Japan, however, LNG bunkering infrastructure has remained limited.