Efficiency Technologies News

Vale, working in partnership with Oldendorff Carriers, has just commenced its first biofuel voyage on a bulk vessel.The trial is taking place on an Oldendorff vessel performing a laden Vale voyage from Brazil to Asia, carrying a full cargo of iron ore.The Hinrich Oldendorff (209,113 deadweight built 2016) loaded the biofuel in Singapore on October 16 on the ballast voyage to Brazil. The vessel then loaded Vale’s iron ore on November 28 at Guaiba Island Terminal and will consume…

Alma Clean Power, Odfjell, and DNV have this week announced a new milestone in the development of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system.The fuel cell system will be installed on a chemical tanker by the end of 2024, aiming to demonstrate the potential for significantly lower fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for deep-sea shipping, the trio said at an event in Singapore."As the maritime industry faces major challenges adjusting to zero emissions over the next decades, fuel cells demonstrate a promising potential for scalable use for longer distances and larger energy needs in shipping.

Carbon capture, energy efficiency and green fuels are the roadmap to net zero by 2050. That’s the pathway outlined by the 2023 Outlook, Beyond the Horizon: View of the Emerging Value Chains, the latest industry-leading research from ABS into shipping’s progress on the green energy transition.Released at the ABS Sustainability Summit during London International Shipping Week, the report examines in depth the carbon, ammonia and hydrogen value chains. It concludes that the industry will need to accelerate investment in carbon capture technology…

Auxiliary wind propulsion systems provider Norsepower Oy Ltd. announced a contract with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co. Ltd. for delivery of single Rotor Sails onboard two newbuild liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered, wind-assisted CO₂ carriers commissioned by the Northern Lights JV. Northern Lights JV is developing the transportation and storage component of Norway’s Longship project to decarbonize industrial emissions.The two liquified CO₂ carriers will be equipped with one 28x4m Norsepower Rotor Sail on each vessel.

Technologies developed and deployed in pursuit of net zero bring environmental and societal benefits for shipping owners and operators to outweigh their own emissions.SIM is a technology with the potential to make a significant contribution to maritime decarbonization, writes Patrick Ryan, ABSOne of the biggest problems for shipowners seeking to understand how environmental regulation will impact the performance of their fleets in future is uncertainty. While the regulatory framework is in place…

The technology group Wärtsilä has launched a new series of power limitation solutions that enable compliance with the IMO’s Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) regulation.The EEXI regulation comes into effect in 2023 and stipulates the minimum energy efficiency level for existing ships already in service. According to Wärtsilä, its new power limitation systems allow owners to meet this requirement, despite the tight implementation schedule. Wärtsilä’s environmental offering…

Shipping line MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and oil firm Shell have partnered up to speed up the decarbonization of the global shipping sector."The long-term memorandum of understanding will help MSC and Shell to play enhanced roles in the energy transformation of shipping, as developers and early adopters of innovative technologies and fuel solutions," the companies said in a statement.The companies plan to develop a range of safe, sustainable and competitive technologies…

Yara Marine Technologies acquired Lean Marine, a company, a company which provides automated fuel-saving, performance management, and reporting solutions, today installed on more than 200 vessels.In a release announcing the deal, it was touted that Lean Marine systems can help cut fuel consumption and CO2emission up to 25 percent. The FuelOpt system optimizes a vessel’s propulsion line in real-time based on the commands from the bridge, enabling automated control of vessel speed and fuel consumption, and avoiding fuel overconsumption.

Classification society ABS said it has completed a joint development project (JDP) with shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and marine services firm Hyundai Global Service (HGS) exploring decarbonization and digitalization in the marine and offshore industries. The project covered simulation and modeling of carbon footprints of a vessel incorporating energy efficiency technologies, liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering analysis and smart technologies.The JDP included detailed simulation and modeling of the carbon footprint of a very large crude carrier (VLCC)…

Wärtsilä Exhaust Treatment said exhaust gas abatement systems, also known as scrubbers, may soon be used to directly tackle maritime carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions as technology advances enable manufacturers to design and upgrade scrubbers to capture carbon at the point of exhaust.Wärtsilä said it has found carbon capture and storage (CCS) can be developed and scaled for ships, and that the solution is technically viable for the sector to pursue among a range of solutions helping to drive decarbonization in shipping…

Carbon emissions from shipping rose in the six-year period to 2018 and accounted for 2.89% of the world’s CO2, a study released on Tuesday showed, amid growing pressure on the industry to bring levels down.About 90% of world trade is transported by sea and UN shipping agency - the IMO - aims to reduce the industry’s overall greenhouse gas emissions by 50% from 2008 levels by 2050.The report - the fourth in a series commissioned by the IMO - said shipping's share of global CO2 emissions increased to 2.89% in 2018 from 2.76% in 2012, when the last study period ended.CO2 emissions grew to 1,056 m

Oil and gas giant Shell has signed long-term charters for six newbuild liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers.Shell has signed separate agreements for two LNG ships each with affiliates of Knutsen LNG, Korea Line Corporation, and ICBC Financial Leasing and institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management.The 174,000 cbm LNG ships will be built by Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries. They will all be equipped with dual-fuel X-DF engines, boil-off management plants, air lubrication systems and shaft generators for auxiliary power.

The GMN global network of maritime technology cooperation centers has completed numerous pilot projects over the past three years, helping to drive forward the changes which are required to reduce GHG emissions from shipping. A global network of maritime technology cooperation centers has completed an impressive array of pilot projects over the past three years, helping to drive forward the changes which are required to reduce GHG emissions from shipping.Five regional Maritime…

Global shipping remains challenged as the IMO continues down its path of setting ambitious decarbonization targets by 2030 and 2050.The Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI), a key component of the IMO's plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, sets minimum energy efficiency design requirements for different ship types and sizes.Bulk carriers and tankers, in particular, will be challenged to comply with upcoming Phase 2 and Phase 3 implementation.This EEDI Phase 3 Compliance Debrief provides insights into:Current EEDI regulationsThe compliance landscape for bulk carriers and tankers in the con

A new IMO video puts the spotlight on how an IMO/EU initiative is helping cut maritime emissions in the Solomon Islands as part of a global project to help tackle climate change.When the solar-powered LED lights go on at night in the port of Honiara, Solomon Islands, they are helping the port meet IMO maritime security requirements.But these lights are also a shining example of how a global project, through regional centers, can help individual countries' ports and shipping sectors improve energy efficiency, cut emissions and clean up local air quality.

The Panama Canal Authority and A.P. Moller – Maersk A/S are the latest entities to join the International Maritime Organization (IMO)-supported Global Industry Alliance to Support Low Carbon Shipping (GIA).According to the UN body, the GIA now has 18 members, including leading shipowners and operators, classification societies, engine and technology builders and suppliers, big data providers, oil companies and ports.The new members signed up to the GIA during the fifth meeting of the GIA Taskforce at IMO Headquarters in London, United Kingdom (15 March).The GIA Taskforce meeting (photos) progressed work on several on-going projects, including on the validation of performance of Energy Efficiency Technologies…

Practical efforts to implement ship energy-efficiency measures and promote technology transfer are an integral part of International Maritime Organization (IMO)'s initial strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships.A press release from the UN-body said that this is embodied in the global network for energy-efficient shipping under the Global MTCC Network (GMN) project, funded by the European Union and run by IMO.Representatives from the five Maritime Technology Cooperation Centres (MTCCs) in the GMN network recently met for their second annual meeting (22-26 October) in London, United Kingdom, on the sidelines of IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 73) meeting.Technical training for MTCC staff on energy efficiency in ship design and operations…

IMO’s 2050 deadline to reduce GHG emissions 50% from 2008 levels has set off a gold rush to develop Zero Emissions SolutionsClimate change is the biggest issue facing [all aspects of] the maritime industry, said Kitak Lim, IMO secretary general, in an interview earlier this year with Maritime Reporter & Engineering News. He predicted that shipping could experience as much change in the next 10 to 20 years as it has in the last 100 years, as the industry races to meet a number of challenges…

When arriving at a destination port, ships can remain anchored for many hours or days until getting a berth. During this time, fuel is still being used – which can have a significant impact on port air quality. Could Just-In-Time (JIT) ship operation be part of the solution to reducing ship emissions? This is the question being discussed at an International Maritime Organization (IMO)-led roundtable meeting of the Global Industry Alliance to Support Low Carbon Shipping (GIA) and relevant industry stakeholders, at IMO Headquarters, London (29 June). Participants are considering JIT operation, which is not currently a common industry practise…

Reducing the amount of time ships spend waiting outside port and at anchor could significantly reduce ship emissions, according to studies carried out by members of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) GloMEEP Global Industry Alliance (GIA).Ships can spend hours or days waiting at anchor outside ports, but providing ships with regular updates about the availability of berths, especially in the last twelve hours prior to port arrival, can support significant reductions in ship and port emissions.Implementing “Just-In-Time” ship operations means ships receive information in advance so they can time their arrival at the berth.

The ground-breaking Global Industry Alliance (GIA) – a partnership of key maritime stakeholders pursuing low carbon shipping – has met at International Maritime Organization (IMO) Headquarters, London (7 December). The GIA is made up of leading shipowners and operators, classification societies, engine and technology builders and suppliers, big data providers, port and oil companies – tasked with identifying and developing innovative ways to encourage use of energy-efficiency technologies and operations. The GIA Task Force meeting, the second one in the series, saw 20 industry representatives from across the Alliance’s 16 member companies discuss how to make further progress on on-going GIA funded activities and to agree new priority areas to pursue under the partnership.

Africa has launched its maritime technology cooperation centre as part of an ambitious  International Maritime Organization (IMO)-EU project to establish a global network of centres to further global efforts in addressing climate change. The centres will act as regional focal points for a wide range of activities including improving compliance with existing and future international energy-efficiency regulations; promoting uptake of low-carbon technologies and operations in maritime transport, and establishing voluntary pilot data-collection and reporting systems to feed back into the global regulatory process. In doing so, they will play their part in supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The U.K.’s Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) has commissioned a £1.8 million ($2.5 million) project that aims to assist financiers to understand and quantify the benefits in investing in fuel efficient technologies for existing and future vessels. The Vessel Technology Assessment System (VTAS) project, which will develop a practical approach to predict the benefit of a range of carbon abatement/fuel efficiency technologies on marine vessels over real-world usage cycles, will be led by BMT and delivered in partnership with Black & Veatch.