Iino Kaiun expands chemical shipping

Japans Marine transportation firm Iino Kaiun Kaisha has taken steps to expand its chemical-tanker shipping operations in the Middle East and Asia. The company has begun chartering a vessel from Oman Methanol to supplement its existing fleet currently transporting chemical products from the Middle East to Asia. The Oman Methanol vessel is primarily used for transporting methanol. The company’s Singapore unit, Iino Singapore, is slated to increase its fleet of chemical tankers from the present 21 to about 32 in 2011. Additional steel tankers will also be operated beginning 2012 to cope with increasing demand. In 2007, Iino Kaiun secured a contract to transport styrene monomer from Chevron Phillips Chemical’s 715,000 ton per year plant in Saudi Arabia to customers in the Far East. The Chevron facility is due to start up in summer 2008. (June 26, 2008)