MOL ups its supertanker orders to nine

MOL ups its supertanker orders to nine    Mitsui O.S.K. Lines has ordered three more double-hull very large crude carrier tankers.
   It brings the total MOL has on order to nine, following an order for six double-hull VLCCs in May 2003.
   The move accelerates the carrier’s adoption of the environmentally friendly double-hull technology. MOL now plans to replace all its VLCCs with double-hull vessels by 2006, two years earlier than its initial target.
   “This move reflects one of the major strategies of the company's mid-term management plan “MOL next” ' allocating management resources in the fields of natural resource and energy transport,” a spokesman for MOL said.
   Three Japanese shipyards share the orders for the nine tankers: Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.; Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corp.; and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.