Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. and MOL Marine & Engineering Co., Ltd. announced that Nippon Kaiji Kyokai (ClassNK Note 1) has granted basic approval to two new training courses related to offshore wind power generation, using Dynamic Positioning (DP) simulator (Note 2) , which is owned by MOL and MOLMEC, for power cable laying and anchor handling training (Note 3). They are currently being prepared for launch and will be the first such courses offered in Japan.

Capt. Naoki Saito, General Manager of Maritime Education and Training Certification Department(left) presenting the basic approval certificate and Takashi Nakashima, President of MOLMEC (right) receiving the certificate.
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The courses are slated to begin by June 2023 as a project selected in a public offering for subsidized projects in the FY2022 Offshore Wind Power Human Resource Development Project administered by the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, part of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Note 4) and its training content is essential for offshore wind power projects.

DP simulator (240°view)
MOL and MOLMEC installed the DP simulator on the lobby floor of MOL’s Head Office in June 2022, and have already offered five other training courses using the simulator (see Table 1 below). Two more courses enabling candidates to acquire practical ship-handling skills for self-elevating platform (SEP) vessels and service operation vessels (SOVs) are also being prepared.

Submarine cable laying ship
(Courtesy: Kokusai Cable Ship Co., Ltd.)
Through these training programs, MOL group will help ensure safe navigation and construction work by personnel operating vessels that are critical to offshore wind power generation and offshore development, which are expected to increase both within and outside MOL group. The courses will also create a workforce of highly skilled DP ship operators, regardless of whether they have seafarer qualifications.
This training center using the DP simulator is the first training center in Japan to be accredited by The Nautical Institute (NI; Headquarters: U.K. Note 5) and can issue training completion certificates required for DP operator qualification for the five courses currently available.

Anchor handling tug supply vessel
MOL group will be widely involved in many phases of the value chain for the offshore wind power business, which is regarded as a key to renewable energy, and contribute to the decarbonization of not only the group but also society.
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[MOL Group 5 Sustainability Issues]
MOL Group will contribute to realizing a sustainable society by promoting responses to sustainability issues, which are identified as social issues that must be addressed as priorities through its business.
We anticipate this initiative to contribute especially to the realization of “Safety & Value -Provide added value through safe transportation and our social infrastructure business -“, “Environment -Conservation for Marine and global environment-” and “Innovation -Innovation for development in marine technology-“.
Source: Mitsui O.S.K.Lines