Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co.

What Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co. does

Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (多度津造船株式会社) is a Japanese commercial shipbuilder headquartered in Tadotsu Town, Kagawa Prefecture, operating a 400,000 sqm shipyard that has been active in vessel construction since 1974 and was re-incorporated as Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. in March 2013 before joining Imabari Shipbuilding Group in January 2015 as one of its three core shipyards. The company builds three classes of merchant vessels: LNG-fueled Pure Car and Truck Carriers under its PCC-L brand (approximately 200m length, 7,000-vehicle capacity, dual-fuel LNG/fuel oil with CO2 reduction of 25-30% and near-complete SOx elimination); bulk carriers ranging from handysize 30,000 DWT to over 100,000 DWT for iron ore, coal, timber and grain trades; and specialized wood-chip carriers serving Japan-North America, Japan-Brazil, and Japan-Indonesia paper-industry supply chains.

Revenue is generated through bespoke, multi-year build-to-order contracts negotiated directly with shipping company customers; vessels are delivered and revenue recognized upon completion and sea trials, with supplementary income from ship repair and maintenance services. The firm has demonstrated serial-production capability in dual-fuel LNG PCTCs, delivering at least eight vessels between October 2023 and March 2026 (SWEET PEA LEADER, DAISY LEADER, TURQUOISE ACE, LAPIS ACE, TOURMALINE ACE, ANGELITE ACE, PADMA LEADER, LAZULITE ACE), with the PCC-L design winning the Japan Institute of Marine Engineering's Ship of the Year 2021 in the Large Cargo Ship division. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales anchored by Imabari Group customer relationships, supplemented by industry awards, maritime event participation, and community-facing factory festivals.

Tadotsu reports approximately 200 direct employees alongside roughly 1,000 cooperative workers, registered capital of 100 million JPY, and no public listing or external venture/private equity funding. The yard sits within Japan's dominant shipbuilding cluster along the Setouchi coast, benefiting from the parent group's #1-by-volume ranking in Japan for approximately 25 years and global top-five position, while operating with limited disclosed financial transparency typical of privately-held Japanese subsidiary shipyards.

Name

Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co.

Legal name

Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co., Ltd.

Website

https://tadotsuzousen.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Tadotsu Shipbuilding is a Japanese merchant shipbuilder in Kagawa Prefecture that constructs LNG-fueled car carriers (PCC-L series), bulk carriers, and wood-chip carriers as a core yard of Imabari Shipbuilding Group, supplying global shipping-company customers with bespoke newbuild vessels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Shipbuilding

NAICS

Ship and Boat Building (33661), Ship Building and Repairing (336611)

akta.pro primary industry

Ro-Ro & PCTC (Car Carrier) Shipbuilding (IMAJAAAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Bulk Carrier Shipbuilding (Dry Bulk: Capesize/Panamax/Handysize) (IMAJAAAA)

Keywords

• Commercial shipbuilding
• LNG fuel vessels
• Bulk carriers
• Car carrier construction
• Ship repair services

Headquarters

HQ city

Tadotsu

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Ship Construction: Custom vessel construction for shipping companies. Long-cycle projects with bespoke shipbuilding. Revenue recognized upon vessel delivery.
2. Ship Repair: Ship repair and maintenance services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (多度津造船株式会社) designs and constructs commercial vessels at its Tadotsu, Kagawa Prefecture shipyard in Japan. It specializes in LNG-fueled car carriers (PCC-L series), bulk carriers ranging from handysize to over 100,000 DWT, and wood chip carriers. The company also provides ship repair and maintenance services, operating as a core shipyard within the Imabari Shipbuilding Group.

Product overview

Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co. is a shipbuilding company constructing commercial vessels at its Tadotsu, Kagawa Prefecture facility. The company operates as a core yard within the Imabari Shipbuilding Group and specializes in three main vessel types: LNG-powered car carriers (PCC-L), bulk carriers ranging from handysize to over 100,000 DWT, and wood chip carriers. The flagship PCC-L series has won industry recognition including the Ship of the Year 2021 award and represents the company's advanced LNG fuel technology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PCC-L (LNG-PCC) LNG Fuel Car Carrier LNG-powered Pure Car and Truck Carrier (PCTC) approximately 200m in length with 7,000-unit automobile capacity. Features dual-fuel engine using LNG and fuel oil, reducing CO2 emissions by up to 30% and SOx emissions by nearly 100%. Awarded Ship of the Year 2021 in the Large Cargo Ship Division.
• Bulk Carrier (ばら積み貨物船)

Quantifiable outcome

• CO2 emissions reduced by up to 30% compared to heavy oil fuel vessels
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Steel Hub Co., Ltd. (株式会社スチールハブ)minorOthers · 1 March 2025Within Imabari Shipbuilding Group, Steel Hub Co. participated in a futsal friendship match with Tadotsu Shipbuilding employees. Both companies are part of the same group. Approximately 50 participants from Tadotsu Shipbuilding joined the friendly competition at J-Futsu Kakogawa facility.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Tsuneishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Japanese group building bulk carriers and PCTCs with yards in Japan and the Philippines. Directly comparable in PCTC and bulk carrier construction, with similar multinational customer base.
• Oshima Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Japanese mid-large shipbuilder specializing in bulk carriers and capesize newbuildings. Highly comparable in vessel mix, customer base (ship owners), and Japanese production economics.
• Mitsui E&S Co., Ltd. Historic Japanese shipbuilder producing commercial vessels including bulkers, tankers, and LNG carriers. Comparable on the engineering complexity of LNG-fueled systems and Japanese yard operations.
• Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Parent company and Japan's #1 shipbuilder by volume for nearly 25 years. Operates multiple yards including Tadotsu itself; directly comparable in building bulk carriers, PCTCs, and LNG-fueled vessels for the same shipping customers.
• Namura Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Japanese shipbuilder producing bulk carriers and merchant vessels. Comparable in vessel types, contract-based B2B sales model, and exposure to global ship owners.
• Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (Ship & Offshore): Major Japanese industrial conglomerate with shipbuilding division producing LNG carriers, LPG carriers, and large commercial vessels. Comparable in advanced vessel engineering and LNG fuel systems.

Broad incumbents

• China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC): World's largest shipbuilding group by capacity, encompassing yards such as Jiangnan Shipyard and Waigaoqiao. Provides competitive pressure across bulk, PCTC, and gas carrier segments.
• Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. (formerly DSME): Korean mega-yard building LNG carriers, VLCCs, and offshore vessels. Highly relevant peer for the LNG propulsion segment where both firms compete for fuel-gas-system equipped newbuildings.
• Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. World's largest shipbuilder producing tankers, bulkers, LNG carriers, and offshore platforms. Competes for the same LNG-fueled newbuilding orders but at vastly greater scale and with broader portfolio.
• Samsung Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. Korean shipbuilder focused on tankers, LNG carriers, and offshore platforms. Competes with Tadotsu in the global LNG-fueled vessel orderbook, especially for PCTC and gas carriers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tadotsu Shipbuilding Co.