News Releases in 2006

October 18, 2006

From left Mr. Yasushi Yamawaki, executive vice-president of NYK, Mr. B.L. Chen, president of CPC; Mr. Takao Sunami, executive managing officer at Mitsui;

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK; Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Koji Miyahara) and Mitsui & Co. Ltd. (Mitsui; Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Shoei Utsuda) have secured a 23-24 year, long-term charter contract with Taiwan's Chinese Petroleum Corporation (CPC)* for four liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers. On October 18, a signing ceremony was held at the head office of CPC.

Those attending the ceremony included Mr. Wenent P. Pan, chairman of CPC; Mr. B.L. Chen, president of CPC; Mr. Takao Sunami, executive managing officer at Mitsui; Mr. Yasushi Yamawaki, executive vice-president of NYK; and Mr. Yuji Semba, NYK corporate officer. All those attending agreed to work hand in hand to further strengthen their strategic partnership.

The long-term charter contract is based on a previous LNG sale and purchase contract between CPC and Qatar-based RasGas II.** CPC will transport a total of three million tons of LNG per year over a period of 25 years from Qatar to Taiwan. Seven leading shipping companies participated in the competitive bidding hosted by CPC. The joint contract was awarded to NYK and Mitsui in July. Additionally, after obtaining ROC governmental approvals, CPC will subscribe for 45 percent of shares of the ship-management company that NYK establishes to manage operations.

Demand for clean energy has increased as a result of the steep rise of crude-oil prices and the importance of environmental conservation. By 2010, experts estimate that demand for the global maritime transport of LNG will double. NYK intends to respond to this trend by increasing the competitiveness of its vessels through the use of expertise acquired through decades of LNG transport to Japan, which currently accounts for 60 percent of the world's LNG transport.

Outline of Charter Contract

Owners	Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha; Mitsui & Co. Ltd. (with CPC and Qatar Gas Transport Company Ltd. maintaining the option to invest)
Charterer	Chinese Petroleum Corporation (CPC)
Term of contract	23 to 24 years from 2009/2010 (with an option for a five-year extension)
Carriers	Four new Moss-type LNG carriers (145,000 m³)
Shipbuilder	Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation (two carriers); Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. (two carriers)
Ship management	Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (with CPC maintaining the option to invest)

*	Chinese Petroleum Corporation (CPC) Established in 1946, CPC is the largest state-controlled petroleum company in Taiwan. In fiscal 2005, the company recorded capital of NT$130.1 billion and revenues of NT$667.8 billion.
**	RasGas II RasGas II, owned by Qatar Petroleum (70 percent) and ExxonMobil (30 percent), is the third-largest LNG producer and seller in Qatar.