Vessels take seawater into their tanks in order to maintain their stability when vessels have no cargo inside holds, which is called “balast water”.There are concerns about the adverse effects on the ecosystem due to the difference of the ports where ballast water is being taken in or discharged and the movement of the aquatic organisms contained in the water. Libera Group installs ballast water treatment systems approved by international conventions and U.S. laws on each ocean-going vessel, and takes measures to sterilize and inactivate harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens contained in the ballast water.

Since 1st Jan 2020, known as “IMO 2020”, the rules of cutting sulphur oxide (SOx) emmisions has been forced to prevent air pollution. We work together with the Charterers to comply with the rules by supplying low-sulfur fuel oil, or installing the scrubber system (exaust gas cleaning equipment). Various international rules are also complied and we, as ship owners are always keep sharp eyes for saving our environment.

Environment protection is our prime priorities. Our objective is No Pollution of the Environment and we have achieved since group’s foundation. Fuel oil and Lubricate oil is handled with the utmost care and attention all the time and we have complied with marine environment conservation.

In accordance with the Convention on the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships adopted by the IMO in 2009 (which is in the process of being ratified for entry into force), we are working to create an inventory (IHM) that describes the location and approximate amount of hazardous substances, waste, and stored materials onboard ships. At ship recycling facilities, this inventory is used as a reference, and recycling is carried out in a manner that ensures the safety and health of workers and prevents environmental pollution. In addition, we conduct inspections required by the European Ship Recycling Convention, which came into effect in 2020 and obtained the necessary certification from ClassNK.

As GHG reduction strategies in international shipping are being promoted, we are working to improve fuel efficiency to comply with the EEXI (Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index) regulation, which is a technical approach.

We comply with the GHG (Greenhouse Gas) rating required by Rightship, a ship rating company, and maintain nomination compliance with major natural resource companies that are particularly demanding.

In compliance with the Poseidon Principle, a principle for incorporating climate change-related initiatives into ship financing decision-making, we submit data on annual fuel consumption, voyage distance, etc. in response to requests from financial institutions that finance ships.

The Poseidon Principle is a set of common rules for quantitatively assessing whether the annual CO2 emissions of a ship subject to financing are consistent with IMO targets in response to requests from financial institutions.

We hold regular study sessions on environmental regulations, which are becoming more strict every day in the maritime industory, in order to improve the knowledge and awareness of our employees.

- In addition to the NOx (nitrogen oxide) regulations that came into effect in year 2000, we study the background and flow of laws that have come into effect thus far. These include SOx (sulfur oxide) regulations and GHG (greenhouse gas) regulations, as well as the responses expected in the future.

- In addition to the study session on EEXI (Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index) and CII (fuel efficiency performance rating system), which are scheduled to be applied in 2023, we have started, and will continue to conduct, research in cooperation with NK, ABS and other classification societies.

We have several vessels and ferries that have received the highest energy efficiency rating for domestic vessels. They are our 3 RORO vessels owned by our group company Izumi Kisen Inc.: “Izumi Maru”, “Tsuruga”, and “Shinsen Maru” and our 4 ferries operate on the Aomori-Hakodate route of Tsugaru Kaikyo Ferry Inc.: “Blue Luminous”, “Blue Happiness”, “Blue Dolphin”, and “Blue Mermaid”.

Under this system, the Maritime Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism evaluates the CO2 emission reduction rate of ships as a measure to conserve energy and reduce CO2 emissions, and rates them with one to five stars depending on the improvement rate. Each of our ship was given a 5-star rating for an improvement rate of 20% or more. Our group is the first company in the ferry industry to have all of its vessels receive five-star ratings under the Energy Conservation Rating System.

Libera Group has invested in a solar power generation project utilizing a 400,000 square meter site in Hikari City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, facing the Seto Inland Sea. The amount of renewable energy to be produced will be approximately 20MW, which is equivalent to the electricity consumption of approximately 6,300 households.

Libera Group’s agricultural division YAMAMOTO CLUB CO.,LTD is planting olives in the island region of Kure City, Hiroshima Prefecture (where we were founded) and in Etajima City that is adjacent to Kure City as a measure to combat the problem of abandoned land. We provide guidance to farmers on cultivation and purchase the harvested olives so that olive cultivation can take root in the region.