KUALA LUMPUR (May 13): MISC Bhd (KL:MISC), which is 51%-owned by Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), is going to jointly develop specialised ships with Japanese multi-modal transportation company Mitsui OSK Lines Ltd, as well as Petronas, to transport liquefied carbon dioxide (LCO2) for storage in Malaysia.

The joint venture agreement was inked last Friday (May 10) by MISC, Petronas CCS Ventures Sdn Bhd (PCCSV) and Mitsui OSK Lines. PCCSV is wholly owned by Petronas.

This follows the memorandum of understanding inked between Petronas and Mitsui OSK Lines in February 2022 to explore CO2 transportation for carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects across the Asia-Pacific and Oceania region.

Petronas and Mitsui OSK Lines aim to develop a standardised design for LCO2 carrier ships that could be used globally, while also focusing on making low-carbon vessels.

“The rationale for the new joint venture is to enable the parties to collaborate and form a synergy based on the parties’ current capabilities for the purpose of exploring potential business opportunities to jointly invest in developing LCO2 carriers for transportation of LCO2 to CO2 storage sites in Malaysia,” MISC said in a bourse filing on Monday.

According to MISC, Mitsui OSK Lines will hold a 50% stake in the JV, while MISC will have 40% and PCCSV will own 10%. The specific details of the investment under this JV agreement are still being finalised, it said.

Shares of MISC, which have risen over 11% year-to-date, closed unchanged at RM8.14 on Monday, giving the shipping company a market capitalisation of RM36.34 billion.