Energy Monitoring News

The maritime industry is often criticized as being slow to adopt new technologies. While ship building is an age-old industry, it is also varied: fishing, commercial, inland, marine construction, energy, passenger, recreation, defense, and the list goes on. Each sector serves a different purpose, and bespoke vessels fulfill different missions, operate in different environments, and are subject to different regulatory profiles. As a result, our industry abounds with unique solutions…

UK-based offshore vessel owner North Star Group has won another service operations vessel (SOV) contract at the Dogger Bank wind farm, this time for the third phase.North Star Group said Thursday it had secured a long-term charter worth about £90 million ($118,7 million) to deliver an additional ship for Dogger Bank C to support offshore wind technicians working in the field.The contract comes a week after SSE Renewables, with partner Equinor, reached financial close on Dogger Bank C, the third phase of what will be the world’s largest offshore wind farm, located in the UK North Sea.

Norwegian shipbuilder VARD has won contracts to build three Service Operation Vessels (SOVs) for the UK-based North Star Renewables. The vessels, to be built in Vietnam, will operate on the Dogger Bank Wind Farm in the North Sea, the world's largest.The shipbuilding contract announcement comes three weeks after North Star said it had won a deal worth around $375 million to supply SOVs for the giant wind farm off the UK. The 3.6 GW Dogger Bank wind farm is being built  in three phases in the North Sea by joint venture partners SSE Renewables…

Another year has passed since our last mapping of the maritime software landscape, and it is once again time to review the latest developments and trends in this space.Overall, 2019 was another turbulent year for most shipping markets, overshadowed by preparations for the IMO 2020 sulfur regulations, rising geopolitical tensions, the trade war between the USA and China, as well as natural disasters disrupting global supply chains. This article provides insight into the changes seen in the maritime software landscape under these turbulent conditions: On a high-level…

French LNG containment specialist  Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) has acquired 100 percent of the share capital of the Icelandic smart shipping specialist Marorka.Based in Iceland and specialized in Smart Shipping, Marorka designs maritime energy monitoring and optimization systems for vessels, allowing them to reduce their environmental footprint. The company’s systems have been installed on more than 600 vessels.The shipping industry has started its environmental transition in January 2020, when a new IMO regulation entered into force, imposing significant reductions in sulfur oxide emissions. The IMO has furthermore announced a long-term “low-carbon” strategy…

The European  project FLAGSHIPS was awarded $5.6m from the EU to support deploying two commercially operated zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell vessels in France and Norway.The FLAGSHIPS project contributes in building two new build vessels, one in Lyon, France and one in Stavanger, Norway. In Lyon, a hydrogen push-boat operated by Compagnie Fluvial de Transport (CFT) will serve as a utility vessel on one of its most demanding rivers, the Rhône. In Stavanger, hydrogen is intended…

Torqeedo  developed a specialized high-thrust electric propulsion system for VIKING’s revolutionary new LifeCraft survival craft, which are designed to speed safe evacuation of hundreds of passengers from ships at sea.The 203-passenger LifeCraft is a motorized inflatable vessel designed to deploy from a shipboard storage/launch station. Passengers board the boats through escape chutes. Once each boat is fully loaded, the crew maneuvers it to a safe standoff distance from the ship…

Diesel power specialist Royston said it will showcase new developments for 2018, including Vessel Energy Monitoring (VEM), at the International Workboat Show.VEM technology, which provides information about a vessel’s architecture and energy levels, as well as efficiency improvement recommendations, is part of Royston’s enginei product, which delivers cost savings and operational efficiencies for offshore vessel and workboat operators.The system records fuel consumption data from bunkers and individual engines, with data provided onboard and onshore.

Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine said it has received an order to deliver a battery-powered energy system for two offshore vessels (PSVs) operated by Norway-based Golden Energy Offshore.The delivery includes the SAVe Energy system, which was launched by Rolls-Royce earlier this month. In addition, the two vessels will receive an upgrade of the existing Rolls-Royce ship design engineering package to match the new features. This includes an upgrade of the Dynamic Positioning (DP) system…

Six offshore platform supply vessels (PSVs) built and then laid up by the Cosco Guangdong yard in China will be equipped with battery-powered energy systems from Rolls-Royce Commercial Marine before going to work for SEACOSCO. The six vessels are among eight that were laid up at the shipyard after being ordered in 2013 and 2014 that were recently taken over by SEACOSCO, a joint venture between SEACOR Marine Holding and China Cosco Shipping Group. The vessel’s new owners have decided to give six of the vessels an environmental upgrade, with an option for a further two.

Krill Systems Inc. said it has completed its phase 2 product development cycle with the recently introduced Krill Regasification Monitoring Center (KRMC). Krill identified this phase of its business plan as the ability to supply a comprehensive range of energy monitoring products which deliver solutions to many the aspects demanded by the oil and gas industry to control energy operating costs. In phase 1, Krill said its focus was on developing Vessel Fuel Management Systems (VFMS) with high accuracy, reliability and features demanded by professional offshore and on shore commercial operators. The basic VFMS system was further developed…

Oil prices were little changed on Tuesday as forecasts for record production out of Russia in 2017 helped offset earlier gains related to a decline in the U.S. dollar and Saudi Arabia saying it would adhere to OPEC's commitment to cut output. Brent futures were up 5 cents, or 0.1 percent, at $55.91 a barrel by 11:26 a.m. EST (1626 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 32 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $52.69. Both contracts were up by $1 earlier Tuesday. Earlier gains were capped by forecasts for rising U.S. and Russian production and scepticism that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as a whole would comply with its commitment to reduce supplies.

It seems like a lifetime coming, but the IMO International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM) has been approved and will enter into force on September 8, 2017. Deemed as an environmental necessity, it creates an enormous operational challenge for the maritime industry. As ship owners, system installers and BWM system manufacturers alike prepare for the many challenges associated with implementation, it would be wise to more closely evaluate the real (and sometimes hidden) risks to system operators and manufacturers.

WAGO announced new additions to its XTR line of harsh environment (-40 °C to 70 °C extreme temperature and 5g vibration resistance) I/O, providing added functionality, delivering Performance Class PLCs, Smart Grid technology and energy monitoring. The PFC200 controller is now available in several new harsh environment XTR variants. Featuring modules with varying communication interfaces: Ethernet, RS-232/RS-485, CAN, CANopen, and PROFIBUS-DP-Slave interfaces; as well as DNP3, IEC 61850 and IEC 60870 protocols supporting use as a Smart Grid controller.

UK-based Royston Diesel Power has secured funding support from Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, for its flagship $2.2 million Managing Energy on Marine Vessels technology program. The program aims to develop a new system for whole-vessel energy monitoring and usage, ensuring on board systems are operating at optimum performance and within environmental best practice. The project is being conducted in collaboration with Newcastle University’s School of Marine Science &…

ABB will deliver energy monitoring and management system EMMA to German-based cruise operator AIDA’s entire fleet consisting of 10 vessels. The EMMA advisory suite, already installed on six of AIDA’s cruise ships, is a decision-support tool to minimize the overall energy costs for individual vessels and entire fleets. AIDA’s installation of the SEEMP-compliant (ship energy efficiency management plan) EMMA will cover seven top-level categories: propulsion power, propulsion efficiency, vessel trim, hotel and auxiliary power, air condition power per person, specific fuel oil consumption of the main diesel generators and total fuel consumption. By reducing fuel consumption, ABB will also help AIDA to reduce the vessel’s environmental emissions.

Many shipping companies use independent experts to conduct comprehensive ship energy surveys which are then used by owners, operators and managers to make better maintenance and operations decisions and improve energy and fuel efficiency. These surveys are often prepared by world-class organizations, which leverage tremendous experience and normally provide information on the operation and energy efficiency of the vessel at that particular time. ESRG has taken these reports and brought them to life within the OstiaEdge platform, enabling this valuable information to be dynamic instead of static and to be relevant as conditions change.

utiliVisor, a provider of energy monitoring and submetering services, has formed a partnership with SUNY Maritime College that will facilitate the implementation of energy efficiency measures at SUNY facilities while creating training and mentoring opportunities for Maritime cadets. utiliVisor is an energy advisory firm providing oversight solutions to large commercial offices, hospitals, institutional and educational buildings, and mission critical facilities nationwide. The firm offers solutions for continuous energy oversight of central utility plant environments and utility submetering systems. Its third party independent measurement and verification services enable owners to achieve significant savings on energy costs.

SEEMP can make a fleet more competitive in a difficult business environment while reducing its impact on the environment. In January 2013, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) put into force new regulations intended to improve the energy efficiency of ships over 400 gross tonnes (gt) on international voyages, including a requirement to keep on board a ship-specific Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP). This initiative is intended to reduce ship greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by encouraging ship operators to reduce energy consumption. Since that time, there has been much discussion within the shipping industry about the potential domestic enforcement of the SEEMP. Recently, the U.S.

Zodiac’s bulk carrier Cape Flamingo was the focus of a wind energy monitoring project, as the project partners investigated the potential to improve fuel efficiency. In 2012 Lloyd’s Register’s Strategic Research Group joined forces with Totempower Energy Systems to support Zodiac Maritime Agencies in assessing the potential for wind-generation devices to be placed onboard commercial ships. Last year, a fully autonomous wind-monitoring system, designed and assembled by Totempower, was installed on the Zodiac-managed bulk carrier Cape Flamingo. Sensors were installed in locations where the best wind conditions and the most relevant environmental data (wind speed…

Jose Femenia, former Head of Engineering and Director of the Master of Marine Engineering Program at the United States Merchant Marine Academy, has been named a consultant at utiliVisor. UtiliVisor is an energy advisory firm that offers comprehensive energy monitoring and analysis services for the marine industry, providing accurate, reliable solutions to boost the fuel efficiency of vessels. Mr. Femenia will serve as a technical advisor for utiliVisor clients on shipboard propulsion and power systems. “Jose’s background at the U.S.

World crude production may rise and fall, but the historical trend shows a steady increase in the price of a barrel of oil, and with it, the price of a ton of fuel. Add the demands of shareholders and charterers to increase operational efficiency and profitability, as well as increasing international pressure to reduce fuel consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions. It is no wonder that ship owners have seen a steady rise, as well, in the availability of technologies — from ship design to propulsion and HVAC systems to hull coatings — that are purported to reduce fuel consumption.

MSC Cruises recently added a new state-of-the-art liner, the MSC Preziosa, helping the Italian company, truly a family business, attain the status of third largest cruise line in the world. MSC Preziosa is a Fantasia class cruise ship owned and operated by MSC Cruises. It entered service in March 2013 as an enhanced version of its sister ships, MSC Splendida and MSC Fantasia, and is identical to MSC Divina, which was launched in 2012. Built at the STX shipyard in St. Nazaire, France, MSC Preziosa is the new flagship of MSC Cruises. The new ship gained immediate recognition famous courtesy of its christening by actress Sophia Loren, and was significant as it signified that MSC Cruises is now the third largest cruise line in the world.