Background

• The London Naval Treaty
  London Naval Treaty
  The London Naval Treaty was an agreement between the United Kingdom, the Empire of Japan, France, Italy and the United States, signed on April 22, 1930, which regulated submarine warfare and limited naval shipbuilding. Ratifications were exchanged in London on October 27, 1930, and the treaty went...
  
   forced shrinkage of a budget to the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). And it meant cooling of the Japanese shipbuilding industry worlds. The Great Depression
  Great Depression
  The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
  
   more accelerated it. The IJN wanted to update their Notoro-class oiler
  Notoro class oiler
  The was a class of seven oilers of the Imperial Japanese Navy , serving during the 1920s and the World War II. They were also called the , after the Notoro and the Shiretoko were converted to other ship types.-Construction:...
  
  s and Ondo-class oiler
  Ondo class oiler
  The was a class of three oilers of the Imperial Japanese Navy , serving during the 1920s and the World War II.-Construction:The Ondo class were initially planned in 1920 as the six of the Kamoi class oilers under the Eight-eight fleet final plan. However, the Kamoi class oilers were built only the...
  
  s, because these oilers were not able to chase the aircraft carrier.
• In 1929, the IJN decided their combat ship (battleship, aircraft carrier, cruiser, destroyer, submarine and torpedo boat) fuel only to heavy crude oil. And, the IJN was paid a grant to newly build large/high-speed tankers.
• In 1931, two marine transportation companies built the tankers which the IJN wanted. One was the 9,900 tons/17.5 knot Teiyō Maru, the other the 9,500 tons/18.8 knots Fujisan Maru.
• The IJN was satisfied by Fujisan Maru. The IJN recommended building of the improved Fujisan Maru class tanker.

Construction

• In 1932, the ordered two tankers Tōa Maru and Kyokutō Maru to the Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation
  Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation
  -External links:*...
  
  . In total 17 tankers were built with the same basic drawings, until 1943.
• All sisters participated to World War II
  World War II
  World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
  
  . However, they were not able to survive at all.

Tōa Maru class

• First production model of the Kawasaki-type tankers. Their success gave courage to other steamship companies.

  Subsidy #	Name	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Completed	Owner
  13		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	24 April 1933	2 April 1934	23 June 1934	Iino Lines
  18		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	25 November 1933	11 October 1934	15 December 1934	Iino Lines

Tatekawa Maru class

• Second production model. They were built by the same as Tōa Maru class drawings. However, their details were different by steamship company which they placed an order for (example: Nippon Maru removed one dry cargo hold). Narrow sense of the Kawasaki-type tanker was until the Kyūei Maru. Kyūei Maru was equipped surplus stocks of the Argentina Maru
  Japanese aircraft carrier Kaiyo
  was a escort carrier operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II. The ship was originally built as the ocean liner Argentina Maru. She was purchased by the IJN on 9 December 1942, converted into an escort carrier, and renamed Kaiyo. The ship was primarily used as an aircraft transport,...
  
   machinery.

  Subsidy #	Name	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Completed	Owner
  		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	20 October 1934	20 April 1935	30 June 1935	Kawasaki Line
  		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	18 October 1935	24 April 1936	30 June 1936	Yamashita Line
  		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	1 May 1936	31 October 1936	24 December 1936	Iino Lines
  101		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	21 April 1937	4 September 1937	20 December 1937	Nippon Suisan
  102		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	12 June 1937	30 December 1937	28 April 1938	Asano Bussan
  104		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	4 September 1937	15 April 1938	30 June 1938	Nittō Mining
  		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	15 April 1938	24 October 1938	21 February 1939	Nittō Mining
  106		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	17 June 1938	26 December 1938	16 May 1939	Kokuyō Line
  		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	29 June 1938	6 April 1939	28 October 1939	Kokuyō Line
  107		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	25 October 1938	13 December 1939	28 February 1940	Kōbe Pier
  		Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard	20 November 1942	3 June 1943	6 September 1943	Nittō Mining

Nisshō Maru class

• One of the variant of the Kawasaki-type tankers. The Mitsubishi used many curves to reduce her air friction strength.

  Subsidy #	Name	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Completed	Owner
  103		Misubishi, Yokohama Shipyard	10 August 1937	13 June 1938	29 November 1938	Shōwa Shipping

Kuroshio Maru class

• One of the variant of the Kawasaki-type tankers. Kuroshio Maru was equipped with a La-Mont boiler. Her design was used for the Type 1TL wartime standard ship.

  Subsidy #	Name	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Completed	Owner
  105		Harima Zōsen, Aioi Factory	21 January 1938	8 December 1938	28 February 1939	Chūgai Line

Akatsuki Maru class

• One of the variant of the Kawasaki-type tankers. The Harima Zōsen used the Sulzer
  Sulzer (manufacturer)
  Sulzer Ltd. is a Swiss industrial engineering and manufacturing firm, founded by Salomon Sulzer-Bernet in 1775 and established as Sulzer Brothers Ltd. in 1834 in Winterthur, Switzerland. Today it is a publicly owned company with international subsidiaries...
  
   diesel.

  Subsidy #	Name	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Completed	Owner
  108		Harima Zōsen, Aioi Factory		August 1938	1 October 1938	Japan Line
  		Harima Zōsen, Aioi Factory	25 January 1938	10 June 1939	15 August 1939	Japan Line

Service

Characteristics