HANSA 03-2018

Schiffstechnik | Ship Technology
About 40,000 vessels worldwide need to have a
Ballast Water Treatment System on board
Photo: Techcross
One man’s curse is another man’s blessing
On 8 September 2017 the Ballast Water Management Convention (BWMC) entered into
force. But shipowners successfully obtained a delay for existing vessels and thus have more
time to install treatment systems on board. By Thomas Wägener
On the one hand, the decision by the
International Maritime Organization
(IMO) to grant vessels built prior to
8 September 2017 two more years before
they require a BWTS on board has led to
relief among shipping companies. On the
other hand, suppliers are upset because
they were hoping for an advance, led by
complex technology. According to the
original plans, the ballast water agreement
was to enter into force earlier. This
would have resulted in many ships to provide
such a technology on board as soon
as last year. At the latest, all ships would
have had a BWTS installed on board by
September 2022. Now operators/owners
have to implement the facilities until the
final deadline in September 2024 (see also
HANSA 8/2017, p. 54).
However, the shipping companies have
successfully rebelled against the original
plans – and prevailed, because they were
able to push a delay. The rationale presented
was that available facilities were
not ready for the market, yet. Furthermore,
the costs would be to high for many
of the shipowners, and in addition, the
shipping companies referred to the problem
of not clearly defined regulations. A
competing legal framework in different
areas of the world would rather complicate
the situation, given the U.S. specifications
for example, they said.
The new BWMC has a massive impact
on the shipping sector worldwide.
The investment for one BWTS could total
2 mill. €. Esben Poulsson, Chairman
of the International Chamber of Shipping
(ICS) thus estimated some 100 bn. € overall
costs for the whole maritime industry.
Poulsson urges shipowners, ballast-water
system manufacturers and governments
to cooperate for the success of the convention,
and to increase the potential for environmental
protection. Owners should
now use the time to invest in better technology,
says Poulsson. Andrew Marshall,
Coldharbour Marine CEO, also urges for
making good use of the additional time:
»Many ship operators require a far better
understanding of ballast water treatment
technologies and their shortcomings in real-life
applications.«
Desmi improves test bed
One of the companies that worked on
their BWTS recently is the Danish manufacturer
Desmi. Its latest test bed, completed
at the end of 2017, works with a
wider scope of testing scenarios, and it
enables customers to gain access to a new,
expanded set of testing certification services.
»We’ve made a considerable investment
to upgrade our existing test
bed with complete, state-of-the-art technology,«
said André Jelstrup, Production
Manager at Desmi. »With eight different
test bases, each equipped to handle
pumps of varying sizes and types, we’ve
now got far greater flexibility.«
The new test bed can be both upgraded
and expanded down the line which is
equally relevant, Desmi stated. The company
sees a vast improvement in upgrading
their test bed technology. Once a
pump is secured on its skid, an auto-cycle
fills the pump cylinder with liquid, pushes
the air out and automatically tests various
points on a pre-determined pump curve.
All the while, two viewing monitors provide
a continuous and complete readout of
the test results. Tolerances can also be accurately
measured providing a significantly
larger data set than the previous system,
Desmi emphasises. This latter feature can
be used to refine designs or catch problems
at a much earlier point during testing.
Wärtsilä has improved its BWTS as well.
According to the company, both Aquarius
technologies are IMO approved, USCG
Alternate Management System (AMS) accepted,
and both are currently undergoing
full USCG and ballast discharge regulation
(Revised G8) testing. Wärtsilä
expects the EC USCG type approval during
the second half and the UV type approval
for the last quarter of this year.
New order for Optimarin
Recently, Optimarin announced another
order from Ahrenkiel Steamship for its
Optimarin BWTS, also known as OBS.
The OBS 334-370 BK has a capacity of
334 m3/h and will be installed on »AS Laguna«.
According to Optimarin it takes
four to eight days to install a BWTS on
board with a capacity of 500 m3/h.
Due to the fact that about 40,000 vessels
worldwide need to be fitted with ballast
water treatment systems in the coming
years, the installation time could be
one of the decisive factors.
M
54 HANSA International Maritime Journal – 155. Jahrgang – 2018 – Nr. 3